


Of Frozen Tears and Solarian Stars

by bitchydragondoodle



Category: Stardew Valley (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Awkward Flirting, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Physical Abuse, Porn With Plot, Self-Harm, Slow Burn, Suicidal Thoughts, Suicide Attempt, Verbal Abuse, but not directed to seb or used by seb, ok like a little plot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-03
Updated: 2020-11-29
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:21:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 33
Words: 37,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24514540
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bitchydragondoodle/pseuds/bitchydragondoodle
Summary: Tara wants nothing more than to leave the life created for her by her overbearing mother and make something her own. What better way to do that than to head to the middle of nowhere with the deed of your deceased grandfather's farm and nothing but the clothes on your back? Witness the slow, sweet attraction of a very nerdy blue-haired farmer and the subdued emo who stole her heart!
Relationships: Sebastian/Female Player (Stardew Valley)
Comments: 33
Kudos: 99





	1. The arrival

**Author's Note:**

> *puts on the Crown of Clowns* IM BAAACK AFTER NEARLY A MONTH
> 
> so i got a nintendo switch and as stardew valley was a mere 16 dollars, i just had to replay it. god the weeks have been divine, foraging and mining and falling in love...i forgot all about my writing.
> 
> turnabout necronomicon is probably gonna be a weekly thing, not a daily thing, seeing as i'm writing a brand new fic for a revived hyperfixation, but i'm so glad for the people who are so pumped for it after all this time!!! you rock!!!
> 
> *points to the emotionally distant pretty boy of every fandom* THAT ONE. I WANNA FUCK THAT ONE.

Tara watched the scenery speed by as she skimmed her phone with a sigh.

Only a few weeks ago, her life as a singular cog in the doldrums of corporate slavery had come to an unexpected halt when she received a letter from her grandfather containing the deed to Mulberry Farm.

To be honest, she had no idea what she was getting into. But that was the fun part, wasn't it? Tara had dreamt of being freed from her overbearing, helicopter mom who insisted on being in every aspect of her life, right up to the day she dropped out of college. She'd forced her to get a job at the local JojaMart in Zuzu City instead of following her dreams as a freelance artist, suppressing any and all urges of wanting to share a single interest with her. Her romantic life was dull and lifeless, causing shame to well up in her as she thought briefly of the casual nights used to blow off steam against her mother.

But that was all behind her now. This was a start at something new.

As the bus drove past a faded wooden sign reading _Stardew Valley-1 Mile,_ she ran her fingers through her cobalt hair nervously. Her mother had expressed a vivid dislike for this place, not only because it didn't appear to hold any promising futures for her daughter, but also because the townsfolk were something of a mystery. They had their own traditions, shrouded in antiquated festivals and legends. There was an air of otherworldliness about this small corner of the world.

Tara could not _wait_ to be hidden away from the rest of the world.

As the bus pulled aside a small clearing, there was a defeated whine from the vehicle. A cloud of smoke billowed from beneath the beaten truck's hood, and the hardy blonde woman driving the bus cursed.

"Shit! Sorry, hon, but this bus finally kicked the fuckin' bucket. Take the path to the left with the signpost, it'll lead you straight to the farm. Lewis or Robin should be there in a minute."

"Thanks a bunch, Pam," Tara smiled.

Pam grunted in acknowledgment, popping the hood and coughing at the noxious cloud of smoke.

Tara huffed a contented sigh as she tugged her suitcase full of all her worldly possessions into the dewy grass, looking around at the clearing. It appeared relatively woodsy, but not to the point that it could be considered a copse or even a grove. There were some trees and bushes, a minecart on the other side of the broken bus, and a fence with a signpost pointing in two directions.

A lone dandelion fluttered prettily in the wind, and Tara knelt to stroke the soft yellow flower's petals absentmindedly before plucking it and tucking it into her knapsack. Perhaps this little spring newcomer was a sign of good fortune headed her way. It would certainly be nice to make a few friends for a change.

Hefting her bag down the rugged dirt path, she glanced around the farm, wincing. The place was an overgrown mess, full of brambles and fallen logs and boulders clogged with knee-high weeds. At least dear old Grandpa Martin had equipped her with a place to sleep, although a kitchenette was in order.

A woman in a leather vest covered in sawdust was speaking with an older mustachioed man near her rickety house. The redheaded woman turned and waved as soon as she saw Tara approaching.

"So you're the new farmer! Nice to finally meet Martin's granddaughter. I'm Robin, and this is Mayor Lewis," the ginger informs her with a firm handshake. 

Tara shook Lewis' hand firmly, eyes still scanning the rustic farmhouse. "It's just like I remember. Rustic as ever."

"Crusty seems more like it," Robin chuckled. "The place is practically falling apart."

" _RUDE!"_ Mayor Lewis huffed as Robin snorted with laughter.

"Really, though, Mayor Lewis, this place could do with a few upgrades. Robin, can I talk to you about installing a kitchenette or something in here? Maybe sprucing up the walls?" Robin lit up, grasping Tara's hands in excitement.

"I'd _love to._ Anything to get Mulberry Farm up and running again."

Tara hissed through her teeth, looking out at the overgrowth.

"It's gonna be a hell of a lot of work, but that's what I came here to do. Working with my hands is something I've always been good at."

Robin grinned and Mayor Lewis tipped his cap. "Welcome to Stardew Valley, Tara."

As they turned to leave, Robin called out over her shoulder. "Come by the family farm for dinner! I'd hate to see you go hungry just because Martin's pantry is full of roaches. Take the upward path and it leads you straight to us."

"Great! I'll see you there," Tara hollered back.

Sighing, the weary, azure-haired girl rolled up her sleeves and picked up the handle of a sturdy scythe, glaring at the overgrown weeds.

"It's showtime."


	2. A smoke by the lake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara meets someone new as she goes out to ask Robin for her services.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HERES THE BOY. 
> 
> i may be writing him a little out of character, with him being a little kinder to strangers, but hey, I see Sebastian as having a bigger heart than one sees. *looks at 14-heart event*

Tara wiped the sweat from her brow, huffing as she looked out frustratedly at the throng of fully grown trees she had to banish from her late grandfather's property. She hadn't thought that logging would take this much out of her. With a weary sigh, she decided to stow away the excess wood, sap, and seeds in a chest on her porch before heading to Robin's to look at house upgrades.

The walk along the small, lightly wooded path was pleasant, with a few crickets chirping noisily above Tara's head as a homely farmhouse came into view. It was already 7:30, so it was already quite dark. Tara wished she had a spare light. As the mountain lake came into view, shepaused.

Standing by the lake was a dark, hooded figure, and judging by the plumes of smoke billowing into the sky in front of them, they were taking a smoke break. Tara looked around. Robin's familiar yellow vest was nowhere to be seen. Was this even the right place? The town was supposed to be small...

Swallowing her fear, Tara's hand closed around the lone piece of quartz she had taken to carrying around for luck, and she bravely stepped up to the figure.

"Um, excuse me, is this Robin's place?"

The figure turned to squint at her a bit sourly. She couldn't see their face in the darkness, and the asymmetrical bangs obscured half of the face that was turned towards her.

"You new here or something?" The voice that spoke next to her was bored and clipped, and its deep tone suggested the figure was a male.

Tara nodded.

"I just moved here. I'm looking for Robin..."

"We close at eight-thirty. You're a bit too late."

Tara glanced down at her watch, the digital display blinking the numbers 8:42 in bright red.

"Aw, shit. Well, I'm sorry to bother you, mister. I guess I'll be heading home now."

"Wait."

Tara froze as the figure rustled in his pocket for something, before handing her a small wooden torch.

"It gets pretty dark up here in the Mountains. Light this next to the trail, it'll help you find your way home."

Tara clenched the wooden stick tightly in her fist.

"Thank you...um...I don't have much on me, but here, take this."

She thrust forward the piece of quartz towards the stranger, who took it silently. His hand was warm and firm as he accepted the shiny stone from her trembling fingers.

"Thanks. I like this."

There was a hint of pleased inflection in his voice. Tara felt something warm and bubbly fill her chest. _A friend!_

"Well, it was nice meeting you, mister." Tara turned away from the hooded figure, squinting as she lit the torch and everything was swathed in an orange glow.

"...Sebastian."

Tara turned to face the hooded stranger. "What?"

The hooded figure looked up at her, and all Tara could make out beneath his dark purple hair was a pair of deep violet eyes.

"My name is Sebastian."

Tara nodded, blushing slightly, before turning and walking off into the night, her heart beating with a feeling she couldn't quite put into words.


	3. Blooming crush

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara visits Robin for dinner as planned, and meets a familiar face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> gOD i feel like i'm rushing into this so fast but i still have some heart events to cover. i just reaaaallly wanna get to the part where they marry and have two frog kids and then tara conceives a real flesh baby and AAAAAAA
> 
> sometimes writing things out in the heat of the moment sucks but hey that's my jam

"It's pumpkin soup for dinner tonight," Robin chirped excitedly.

Tara looked down at the creamy orange soup, her stomach already growling. "Thanks a ton, Robin."

Robin smiled at her as she set places for the rest of the family. "You're always welcome here. Any friend of Martin's is a friend of mine. I was so sorry to hear of his passing."

Tara stirred at her soup absentmindedly. Grandpa Martin hadn't gotten along well with her mother either before he died, with her wild claims of him soiling the family name by living on a farm instead of having a 'real job' driving him to stay home for the remainder of his retirement. Tara had been his occasional caretaker, bringing him food and sitting with him on the days that his nurse, Maru, was unavailable. It was Maru that had found him, peacefully passed away in his slumber, and Robin had told Tara as much as she prepared dinner.

Robin patted Tara on the shoulder kindly. "I wish Maru and Demetrius could join us, but they're doing some late-night research. It's just you, me, and Seb."

"Seb?"

The awkward silence was broken by the sound of steps from below. Tara nearly gasped out loud as the quiet teen from yesterday evening emerged from the basement. Tara blinked. Now that he was out of the sun and not wearing his hoodie, he was strikingly handsome. His pale, angular face was beautifully framed by asymmetrical purple locks, with lightly muscled arms peeking out from a baggy graphic tee. He looked wiry beneath his skinny black jeans, but considering his choice of clothing, it was impossible to tell. He turned to look at Tara and froze, looking almost frightened.

"Are you the new farmer?" He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, looking at his mom, who gave a tiny nod.

Tara stood hurriedly in her eagerness to greet him, nearly knocking over her bowl of soup.With a yelp of surprise, Sebastian leapt forward to catch the bowl as it tipped near the edge of the table, coming nearly nose to nose with Tara.

"Y-yeah, I am the new farmer. My name's Tara," Tara squeaked, averting her gaze from his unusual purple eyes. Sebastian flinched, placing the bowl of soup in front of her before whirling to promptly fix his own bowl and place it on the table, tucking in ravenously.

"Nice to meet you, Tara," he mumbled between bites of pumpkin soup.

"Seb's a computer programmer," Robin proclaimed proudly from the sink. "He mostly patches coding errors and such down there, but he's looking for a job in Zuzu City."

"Really?" Tara grins internally. Some of her family on her father's side have some pretty decent connections with the tech companies in Zuzu City. Maybe if she plays her cards right, she can make a new friend today.

"Well, my uncle is friends with the CEO of Cylon Industries. I can give you his contact info if you like."

Sebastian perks up at this. "You're kidding, right?"

Tara shakes her head, pulling out a small business card from her pocket. "Nope," she smiles amiably, sliding the card over to Sebastian, who examines it as if it were a priceless diamond. Robin gives Tara a pleased wink as Sebastian looks up at her, a slight blush on his face.

"This is really kind of you, Tara," he says softly, putting the card in his back jeans pocket. "Would you, um, would you like to see some of my coding work? I mean, you don't have to..."

Tara stands, a bit more slowly this time, nodding enthusiastically. "Sure! I bet my uncle will have lots to say about your work."

Robin smiles fondly at the two of them as they head downstairs to Sebastian's lair.

It's quite dim in the small basement room, with a black couch taking up a great deal of the wall space, and various posters of heavy metal bands and fandoms scattered on the walls. Tara's gaze sweeps over them swiftly, until she spots one she recognizes.

"Whoa, you're a fan of Greetings from Evening Village? That's one of my favorite podcasts!"

Sebastian gave her a small smirk, causing Tara's stomach to flip over. Yoba, that was hot.

"Look at me. Do you really think I wouldn't be a fan of surrealist horror and fantasy?"

She laughs. "I suppose not. Then again, I don't make a point to judge by appearances."

"Hnn. At least you're better than dear old Demetrius. That guy doesn't know what to do with me. He thinks I'm a no-good deadbeat, living down in my mom's basement, but I'm trying my best. I don't know why he can't _fucking_ see that."

There was an awkward silence before he sat down at his computer, flashing Tara an almost sympathetic look from where she stands, fidgeting, by his couch.

"I need to finish this module by tomorrow. Do you mind?"

Tara nodded, backing towards his door.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt your work..."

He waved a hand dismissively. "It's fine. Most people do."

Tara gave a small laugh before starting up the stairway. "Nice seeing you, Sebastian."

Sebastian sits up straight, looking at her retreating back, then at the piece of quartz on his shelf. He grabs it swiftly, running up the stairs after her.

"Tara, wait!"

He presses the quartz into her hand, looking to the side bashfully.

"Thought you might want this back."

Tara smiles, puts the quartz back in her pocket, and grabs his hand from where it lies limply at his side, giving it a thankful shake.

"Thanks, Sebastian. Really, I have to get going. I guess I'll see you around..."

The thought flies unbidden into his head before he can think it over, and the words erupt from his mouth twice as fast.

"Me and my friends usually hang at the Stardrop Saloon on weeknights. Do you wanna come join us?"

Her eyes light up, and Sebastian feels his pulse skyrocket.

"I'd love to!"

She gives him a grin and a pleased wave before hefting a pile of wood from the counter, striding out the door as it jingles cheerfully behind her.

Sebastian walks back to his room, sitting on the couch with a small sigh before fumbling for a cigarette.

Having emotions sucked ass.


	4. The cold touch of fear

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara slips up, and an unexpected message from her overbearing mother causes her to make a rash decision. Sebastian offers to help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *listens to A Sadness Runs Through Him by the Hoosiers*
> 
> me: *rubbing hands evilly* OH BOY. FUCKIN ANGST TIME BABEY.

Tara growled at her strawberry plants. The regrowth period was only 4 days, yet somehow her stubborn little seedlings were as rebellious to their creator as Tara had been to her own.

"Fuckin' wimps," Tara muttered, swinging the hoe with a bit too much irritation and accidentally hitting the strawberry plant closest to her feet. She glared at it as it promptly curled in on itself and vanished in a pouf of green leaves. "Shit."

The first time her plants had magically disappeared, Tara had stomped straight to Pierre's and demanded an explanation. Pierre only laughed and said that magic was a main driving force of the Valley, and had handed her a free pack of gum with a very faded pamphlet detailing the magical history of Stardew Valley. After reading about Shadow People, Junimos, wizards, and mine creatures, Tara had left the town square bewildered but intrigued.

Now, nothing surprised her anymore. Especially not the small cave that somehow reproduced various mushrooms faster than any normal fauna. No, that wasn't unusual at all.

What was unusual was how the shy emo boy had taken such an immediate liking to her.

She suspected it was because she had embroidered a SARDIT from Medic Whom on her overalls, and that, in turn, had sparked a friendly conversation about said show between them as she waited in line to sell her produce.

Or maybe it was the enthusiasm with which she badly played arcade games, making the dark-haired young man smirk and shake his head at her as he lined up his next shot in pool.

"Hey."

Tara jumped, decimating a second strawberry plant. "Yoba, Sebastian, you scared the shit out of me!"

The pale teen chuckled, shoving his hands into his hoodie pockets. "I've heard it makes great fertilizer."

Tara lightly whacked him on the arm. "Oh, har de har. You're the funniest person since Ron Lumaney."

"Street smarts," he snorted, kicking at a stone on the ground.

Tara leaned on her hoe in a faux casual stance. "So what brings you to my failing wasteland, king of the underground?"

Sebastian suddenly looked very interested in the toes of his shoes.

"So, um...about that get-together at the Saloon...my friends want to have it tonight."

Tara examined her muddy nails. "I mean, I have a lot of work to do, but I can make it."

She smiles. "They must be really excited to meet me, huh?"

Sebastian nods, flushing.

Tara grinned. "Wow. I never knew small-town folk could be so nice. When I first came here, everyone looked at me like I was covered in monster slime."

Sebastian raised an eyebrow. "Has that ever actually happened to you?"

Tara huffed as he gave another snort of laughter. "Yes, it has, and only because I'm trying to survive and get shit for people at the same time!"

"Oh? What kind of shit? The fertilizing kind?"

"No, Yoba, you're such a little bastard," she chuckled, swatting him on the arm. "I'm gonna spoil the finale of Medic Whom for you if you don't get out of here."

Sebastian's eyes narrowed. "You wouldn't dare."

"Oh yeah? Well, when we left off, the Medic was..."

Sebastian clamps his hands over his ears, glaring at the farmer as she cackles madly. "You're the _worst."_

"Nah, you love me."

Sebastian's eyes widen to the size of saucers and he turns pink, not meeting the farmer's gaze. Tara's cheeky grin fades as the two share an uncomfortable silence.

"Shit, um, not like that, I mean-"

"I have to go."

Tara's face fell as Sebastian rose clumsily, staggering down the well-worn path like a horde of wasps was after him. She bit her lip, cursing the poor choice of words, and wondering why his reaction had been so negative. Her phone dinged, and she opened it, hoping for a nice distraction.

She blanched.

Mom: Tara Lydia Waters, where the hell have you gone off to???

Mom: I just checked FindMyFriends. Did you run off to Father's old farm? Don't tell me you quit your job...

Mom: TARA I THOUGHT WE RAISED YOU BETTER THAN THIS.

Mom: WE'LL BE THERE IN A WEEK. PACK YOUR THINGS. YOU ARE IN BIG TROUBLE.

Tara choked back a sob before giving in to the wave of hopelessness and collapsing in on herself, drawing her knees up to her chest as despair reared its hideous head.

******************

"Dude! If you LIKE her, just go get her a bouquet! It's not that hard, and it's only two hundred gold..."

"It's too soon."

Sebastian peered at the pool table, lining up his next shot as Sam scoffed, downing a second Joja Cola.

"Never say never, Seb..."

"No, dude. I've got shit to figure out. And I've got a feeling she does too. Nobody just comes to Pelican Town. It's usually to get away from the world. There's nothing here and nobody to ask questions. It's the perfect place to run to."

He gave a wry smile, glancing up at Sam, who looked almost exasperated as he finished off his slice of greasy anchovy pizza.

"Except for you, computer boy."

Sebastian sighed, knocking the cue ball perfectly to where two balls rolled neatly into their respective pockets. "There's nothing for me here, Sam. My talents are wasted in a town where nothing moves forward. If I want to move out of my mom's basement, I have to do something..."

He was cut off by the sound of Abigail bursting through the saloon doors, looking upset.

"Guys, Tara's gone to the mines. She's not answering any texts, either." She holds up a slightly cracked phone dripping with water.

Sebastian's brow furrowed and Sam ran over to Abigail, pulling her into a one-armed hug.

"Abby, chill. What happened?"

"I was just going to play my flute by Seb's place when she runs over to the river and fucking throws her phone in. If we soak it in rice, maybe we can hack it and find out what's got her so upset. The mines are dangerous, guys. She didn't even have a weapon with her, I...Yoba, I hope she's all right."

Sebastian stood, looking at Abigail seriously. "I'll go get her. The mines are closest to my house, and I've been down there before. I know my way around a blade."

His friends just gaped at him. "You are batshit insane," Abigail declared, pointing an accusatory finger at him.

"Maybe," Sebastian shrugged. "But I know two things: one: people go to the mines when they are in a dark place, and two: in a dark place, sometimes the thing you need most is for someone to listen."


	5. A sadness runs through her

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara and Sebastian bond over the difficulties of life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ANGST TIME HOO BOY! 
> 
> Also trigger warning for domestic verbal abuse. If there are any other triggers i should know, pop them in the comments and I will not hesitate to add them. We like makin' people feel seen, lads.
> 
> The song in the mines is Cloth from the Stardew Valley OST.

A slime hisses wildly at Sebastian as he tromps through the chilly caverns, his lava katana the only source of warmth in the frigid chambers.

He looks around nervously before giving a weary sigh and looking at his watch. Fifty-nine levels in and he still can't seem to find Tara. There's evidence she was here, though, with the slight scorch marks on the ground and small stones littering the floor indicating her use of bombs, and the telltale ladders used to climb from cavern to cavern. There are no minerals or ore veins in sight, so he supposed she'd been busy trying to take her mind off of whatever lured her to such a dangerous place.

Sebastian is snapped out of his thoughts by a pair of sharp teeth on his ankle. He looks down at the greyish-blue slime nibbling eagerly at his foot, glaring up at him with beady eyes. It's almost cute, he thinks, before it latches his teeth deep in his ankle.

"Ow! You little bastard!" The slime's tiny black eyes narrow and it shrieks at him, barreling towards him in an effort to knock him over. One swing of his lava katana turns the beast into a small pile of sludge and sap, which Sebastian pointedly ignores. Monster loot isn't really interesting. It's mostly discarded guts of killed creatures, and while that may sound metal to some, Sebastian personally preferred the calming beauty of a frozen tear to the sickly sweet smell of slime flesh.

He descends the ladder, finding the reassuring, rusty elevator on the sixtieth floor. Another comforting sight awaits him: Tara, sitting on the ice overlooking the small glacial lake, her knapsack lying beside her, spilling over with ore and frozen tears.

He steps over to her softly, sitting down beside her. Her knees are curled up to her chest, and her face is quite obviously tear-stained. Sebastian clears his throat, but she doesn't look at him. All is quiet except for the lapping of frigid water against the ice.

"Hey, Tara," he finally says. "If you, um, want to talk about whatever brought you down here, I'm more than willing to listen. We've all got shit that goes on behind closed doors, y'know, and sometimes, talking it out helps more in the long run. But if you don't want to, that's okay."

Her gaze shifts to him, a silent plea to continue, a dare to make her feel better amidst the roiling pain that bubbles underneath.

Sebastian picks up a frozen tear from her knapsack, rolling it idly in his fingers. "They say these are the tears of a yeti, y'know. It was a female yeti, looking for her lost love in the mines. The further she went, the more she cried, knowing she wouldn't find him. But she did, right in front of this lake, and he was making her a ring. She was so happy she sang, and that's the music you can hear sometimes."

Tara shifted, looking back at the lake as an eerie piano tune began playing from somewhere above. It was eerily sad, full of the yearning of someone searching, searching for something they knew would never come, and finally, a sense of peace and joy as what was lost was found.

They sat there, listening to the strange, spectral notes float across the lake, until finally, Tara spoke.

"My mother never really thought of me as her daughter, I don't think. She saw me as a chance to relive her life, not as a new life with other wants and potentials. All my life, I've been pushed and pulled towards perfection. Piano lessons, private colleges, a job at JojaMart. She's always pressed me down, wanting me to be the perfect, obedient daughter, and if I resisted, she'd twist my words to make me believe I was less than nothing."

Sebastian winced. Demetrius often made him feel like this, wanting him to go out and get a job so that he could be more like Maru, the perfect, model daughter who took initiative. However, he'd never felt like he was unloved by his parents. Robin was an excellent mother, and even though Demetrius nagged him, he knew that Demetrius meant well underneath his stern exterior, even if Demetrius seemed constantly disappointed in him. They argued a lot, but there was always an apology, a halfhearted offer to go get bike parts or new Solarian Chronicles books, and so they had maintained a fairly stable relationship.

Tara had never had that. Her mother, the woman who had given her life, was supposed to treat her with love and kindness, not disdain and vitriol. He couldn't imagine the pain that had caused.

Tears began to stream down Tara's cheeks, and Sebastian shifted, resisting the urge to wipe them away. "She'd always say, Tara, if you do better I'll stop treating you like what you're worth. If you prove to me that you can be something I can be proud of, then I'll finally treat you like a daughter of mine. And I tried. Yoba, I tried so hard."

She was openly crying, wiping away her tears with the chilled palms of her hands, sniffling. Sebastian inched closer, eyes trying to convey sympathy as he listened to her story.

"I don't think she ever loved me, Seb," she whispered, and that broken, shaky whisper was all it took for Sebastian to pull her into a hug, his heart cracking for the girl sobbing in his arms, rubbing her back with soothing circles as he held her.

He couldn't fathom the sadness running through her, but he'd felt that same uselessness, the same feeling of hopeless questioning where one wonders if they are even worth remaining on the planet if all they do is never acknowledged. He'd say things like, 'If I just disappeared, would it really matter?' or 'I was thinking...people are like stones skipping over the water. Eventually, we're going to sink.' Those were the words of someone who never felt _seen,_ and he knew how lonely it was when someone didn't _see_ you.

And Yoba, he _saw_ her. He _saw_ everything about her, and he wasn't going to close his eyes to any part of that. Her ugliness, her beauty, her trials, her tribulations, her utter lostness, and her flickering wings of hope.

He saw all of it, and he sat there with her, seeing her broken form and just basking with her in the anguish, not saying a word. His presence and sympathy were enough.

"C'mon," he finally murmured into her shoulder, patting her on the back. "It's getting dark. Let's take you home, okay?"

She sniffled, nodding, and he squeezed her hand.

He knew these feelings of hopelessness, and Yoba be damned if he wasn't going to help ease her burden.


	6. 4-star event

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An interpretation of Seb's 4-heart event.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOOO i'm so tired but this game gives me the seratonin

Tara grunted, hefting the crate of wood and stone through the rugged path to Sebastian's house. Clearing away all the wood and stone from the farm had taken its toll, but now she finally had enough to construct a coop. For a mere eight hundred gold, she could buy her own chickens and soon have enough eggs to finish the mysterious Junimo bundle engraved on a golden tile in the run-down Community Center.

Upon her arrival, however, Robin was nowhere in sight. Neither were Maru or Demetrius. The only figure she could spot was Sebastian, busily ensconced on a skateboard beneath a rusty blue and silver motorcycle.

Smiling faintly, she plopped the crate down on the porch and headed in his direction. Ever since her small breakdown at the mines, he'd seemed to mellow a little, no longer speaking to her as sarcastically or scathingly as he would to his other friends. He genuinely seemed to hold an air of gentleness about him whenever he was near her, and the mere presence of him could calm her even when her social anxiety reared its ugly head.

He could just look at her, his eyes asking if she wanted to leave, and they would set off for her house, chatting amiably about some obscure band or the latest episode of a popular TV show. Those times of night were almost better than the social outings themselves, because while she did enjoy the company of Abigail and Sam, they didn't quite get the need to be away from the not-so-hushed sounds of conversation or the blaring lights of the arcade games. Sometimes, all she wanted was a nice, calm stroll beneath the stars with a close friend.

A suspiciously close friend.

Tara hugged her chest as she blushed to herself, eyeing Sebastian's toned form beneath the motorcycle, his lean torso stretched beautifully like Apollo from where it lay enveloped in a purple muscle shirt. Yoba, he was really, _really_ hot. Now that she thought about it, she had had a lot of dreams about the guy lately. Dreams of them exploring the secret woods, or chilling in the bathhouse, or... _other_ things.

Tara shook her head and stepped up to Sebastian, kneeling beside him.

"Hey, Tinkerbell, you seen your mom?"

Sebastian rolled out from underneath the motorbike, a blotch of engine grease smeared sloppily on one of his cheeks.

"Oh, hello Tara. Nah, I haven't seen her. I've been working on my bike all morning."

Tara nodded, looking at the endearingly rusty vehicle. "I didn't know you rode."

Sebastian smirked. "What, you haven't seen my motorcycle before? Hmmm...I guess I haven't shown it to you."

He rolls back under, the slight clink of tools filling a small gap of silence before he begins to speak again.

"Sometimes, after sundown, I make the long ride out of Stardew Valley. There's nothing else like it, blazing along the empty stretch of road towards the faint city glow..." He sighed, almost dreamily. "Once I've saved up enough money, I'm going to head out on my own...to the city and beyond. Just me and my bike." He gives a small grunt, as the sound of oil filling up the tank broke Tara's rather morose thoughts. "There we go, oil's changed."

Tara gives a small noise of acknowledgment, feeling almost queasy at the thought of Sebastian venturing out on his own. The wistful tone in his voice hurt a little, knowing that one day, he would be gone, and Tara would once again be left in a lonely, unforgiving world. Still, if Sebastian wanted to follow his dreams, then she wasn't going to be the one to stop him. He already had enough difficulty with Demetrius. She wasn't about to become a second obstacle.

As if hearing her silent sadness, Sebastian rolled out from underneath the bike, placing a reassuring hand on Tara's knee. She jumped a little, flushing.

"Hey," he murmured softly. "Maybe I'll take you for a ride someday. Y'know, before I leave."

Tara smiled. "That sounds fun."

Sebastian gave her a shy, genuine grin. "Great!"

Tara felt her heart flip over like she was walking on air.

_Oh, boy. I'm catching feelings._


	7. Inappropriate use of a bong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara and the trio of nerds hang out and play a game. Tara tells a story that makes Sebastian hot under the collar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hnnng i'm ravenous for smut but i wanna draw it out
> 
> fuck sebastian for being such a sexy devil

Seb: tara wake up its a trap

Seb: TARA MY FRIENDS ARE COMIN TO DRAG YOU TO BONGWATER HELL WAKE UP

_12 unread messages_

Tara hummed an upbeat tune as she yanked at a particularly stubborn parsnip. Unbeknownst to her, a dark figure was hurriedly rushing towards her, a limb outstretched to nab her shoulder...

"Believe it or not, I'm walking on air...FUCKING YOBA!" Tara leapt, brandishing her trowel like a dagger as Sebastian's pale hand landed on her shoulder. He looked winded, sweat running down his neck like a waterfall. His black shirt stuck to him grossly as he panted, hands on his knees to catch his breath.

"Seb, you scared the pants off of me," Tara muttered, glaring daggers at him. "What's got you out of your hole?"

"My friends wanna come visit," Sebastian wheezed. "Like, _right now."_

_"_ Right now _?_ As in, _right now_ right now?"

"YES."

Tara dropped her parsnips in a flurry, waving her hands worriedly. "Shit, man, I didn't even clean the house! I don't even have any snacks..."

"What's crackin', Tara?"

Sebastian groaned, outstretching an arm dramatically to reveal Sam and Abigail, dutifully trotting past the front gate, Joja Cola and chips in hand. "Hey, Seb, we brought your bong."

Tara's eyes lit up. "Dude. You got pot here too? I swear to Yoba, if I'm not in on that shit, I'll be crankier than Pierre when Morris comes in his shop."

"Sorry dude," Sam shrugged. "Seb's all out."

Sebastian leaned into Tara. "I'll get some more later, 'kay?" Tara blushed as his lips skimmed against her ear ever so slightly. Man, he was coming on strong today.

"Today, we are gonna play two truths and a lie." Abby grinned, shaking Sam's shoulder. "If you get the lie wrong, you get a splash of bongwater in your face."

Tara's eyes narrowed. "Oh. So it's gonna be like that, huh? Well, if you're going to play dirty, _I'm_ going to play even dirtier." Flashing a grin and a wink over her shoulder at Sebastian, she gathered up her parsnips and headed inside. Sebastian flashed a withering look at Abby, who shrugged.

A few moments later, the trio heard the door creak open and turned anxiously. Sebastian's ears promptly flushed pink. Tara was wearing a plunging pink shirt, the fabric outlining her curves in a mesmerizing manner.. Her stocky farmer's overalls were replaced with black shorts that accentuated her shapely behind quite nicely. She gave them all a confident cackle as she plopped down on the porch by Sebastian, who was trying very hard not to stare at her breasts.

Even Abigail flushed, eyes flicking down towards Tara's cleavage for a second. "Damn, girl. That's cold, going for my poor gay heart like that."

Tara giggled. "If you make me smell like weed, then I'm going to use all my divine succubus powers to distract you."

Sam just gulped. "Yoba, Penny would be pissed if she saw me now."

Tara grinned wickedly, bouncing up and down slightly. Sebastian scoffed, glancing to one side as Abigail fanned herself. Sam busied himself with a Joja Cola, slurping particularly loud in an effort to distract himself.

"Aight, Tara, since you've bewitched us all with your massive sexual energy," Abigail drawled, holding up the bong, "you get to go first."

"Okay," Tara smirked. "I've never tried fish tacos before. My middle name came from a soap opera my dad used to like. I lost my virginity behind an acupuncture parlor at 1 in the morning."

"Pshh, number one. Nobody has never eaten a fish taco," Sam chortled, reaching for the bong teasingly. Abigail smacked his hand and he yelped, making Sebastian chuckle lightly.

Tara twirled a strand of her blue hair, smiling mysteriously. "Okay. Seb?"

Sebastian gave a thoughtful hum before grinning widely, lying on the porch with his hands beside his head in a casual gesture of nonchalant confidence. "Two. Soap operas typically have Hispanic names. You dumbass." He yelped as Tara ruffled his hair. "Wait and see, big guy," she retorted.

Abby shrugged, digging out a handful of sour cream and onion flavored potato chips and shoving them into her mouth unceremoniously. "Well, I guess I'll pick three. Fortune favors the bold!"

Tara took the bong from her hands, holding it aloft like a trophy, before turning it to Sam with a triumphant laugh and splashing the bongwater all over Sam. Sam looked at his varsity jacket woefully. "Welp, now my jacket has weed smell _and_ Sebastian spit all over it. Fuckin' nasty, dude."

Sebastian just threw back his head and laughed. Tara blushed a little, noting how genuine he sounded in his mirth. It was melodic, hearing how happy he sounded. She was glad she got to see this side of him.

Abigal hummed, interested. "Before we start the next round, do tell us the tale of how you lost your virginity behind an acupuncture place. I'm intrigued."

Tara flushed, burying her face in her hands. "Nooooo, it's mortifying."

Abigail shrugged. "Hey, we've all been there. One of my girlfriends got infected from a cucumber. We all have weird sex stories."

"Not me," Sam boasted.

"Yeah, because you're a pure wittle baby," Abigail teased, elbowing him.

"Take it easy, Abby, I'm just waiting for the right girl! Hey Seb, what about that mortifying loss of virginity you had to Abby?"

Sebastian groaned, flipping him off. "Dude, I think that experience alone made her want to be a lesbian."

"See? All of the sinners have weird sex stories, now go!" Abigail chirped. Sam leaned in, and even Sebastian sat up to hear the story.

"Well," Tara began, "I was at this midnight pancake party with one of my Solarian Chronicles members. He was hot, really. Like I thought I had no chances. Then, out of nowhere, he asks if we want to fuck, and I'm like, Yoba, yes. So he drives me to the acupuncture place.."

"Boo! Get to the sex!" Abby hollers, and Tara flushes.

"Actually, um, he was touching my pussy all the way there," she murmurs shyly. Sebastian feels the heat rise in his groin at how her voice can sound so demure while saying something so lewd. He swallows, glancing at Sam, who has turned beet red.

"So, we get there, and he, um, gets the condom on, and he fucks me in the front seat," Tara manages, eyes flicking to Sebastian as if to gauge his reaction. He raises an eyebrow quizzically, and she glances away. Abby cackles.

"Which position?"

"Uh...doggystyle."

"Niiiice," Abigail nods, wiggling her eyebrows. "How big was his dick?"

Tara shrugged. "About average? I only saw it for a minute..."

Sebastian inhales softly, trying desperately to block the flow of images to his brain. Tara on all fours, looking back at him with baby blue eyes as he guides himself in, making her moan...

As his friends laughed and chatted about weed, sex, and college parties, he found himself struggling with the urge to lock eyes with Tara. He wanted her, but he had to be sure she wanted him back.


	8. 6-heart event

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An interpretation of Sebastian's six-heart event if the player was a real D&D nerd and wanted her character to be the same.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOO BOY IT'S NERD TIME. WE GOT WEED AND BAD SEX JOKES JUST LIKE THE BEST COLLEGE D&D SESSIONS SO HERE WE GO.

Tara huffed as she lugged the second crate of wood and stone up the dirt path to Robin's shop. She was beginning to wish that she had crafted some warp totems to the mountains, but there was no time to bemoan her aching legs. All that she could do was drag the crate to Robin's shop, wheezing, and ring the doorbell.

To her surprise, Sebastian answered the door. To her even greater surprise, he was not wearing his hoodie.

Sebastian was wearing what looked like meticulously detailed dark mage cosplay. He wore a hooded cloak pinned with a silver snake brooch at his throat, with a flowy white shirt, black leggings, and black boots that went up to the knee. There was no other way to put it. He was a prince in shining armor.

Tara instantly thought she must have died and gone to heaven because there was no way Sebastian would dress this lavishly on purpose. Unless it was for Solarian Chronicles night, which Tara couldn't remember if it was today or tomorrow...

"Tara? Hey, you zoned out a bit there," Sebastian said, a tad concerned. Tara blinked. He had gotten just a little bit closer to her, his hand brushing her forearm. Blushing, Sebastian stepped back, allowing Tara in. She heaved the box of building materials onto the counter, thanking Sebastian as he counted out her gold and handed it to her.

"So, uh...what quest art thou on, Sir Mage?" she joked, gesturing at his outfit.

Sebastian gave her that devilish smirk, whipping his cloak around him.

"None other than the quest for the Solarian Staff, my lady," he proclaimed, gesturing down his basement stairs.

"Damn, that was tonight? I forgot my healer's robe," Tara whined.

"I think Abby left an extra one in Maru's closet," Sebastian hummed, poking his head into his stepsister's room. "They've started hanging out a lot recently. I think Abs may have a massive crush on her...Aha! Here it is!"

Tara gingerly took the soft white dress with its hooded cloak and emerald brooch. "Great! I'll just...um..."

"The bathroom's down this way," Sebastian instructed, his palm on the small of her back. Tara felt her cheeks heat up at the feeling of his long fingers on her waist. Nodding gratefully, she slipped into the bathroom to change into her cosplay.

Sebastian leaned casually against the doorpost, excitedly thinking about what Tara would look like in costume. A part of him felt scandalized at the idea that he was right outside the door while she was undressing, but his deeper, more primal urges rose to the surface as he thought of her, pressed against the bathroom wall, making delicious whimpers as he kneaded her chest...

"Seb, um, would you mind helping me for a minute?"

Sebastian swallowed. Ever the gentleman, he closed his eyes before entering, only to be met by a shy laugh from Tara.

"It's okay, I'm not topless," she giggled. "I just need you to check and make sure the dress isn't too big."

Sebastian opened his eyes slowly, then gave a tiny gasp.

Tara was...Yoba, she was _ethereal._ The white fabric hugged her body loosely in a way that Abigail had never pulled off, and the emerald pendant glittered mischievously at her neck, alerting his eyes to the ivy leaves embroidered at the neckline, and-Oh. _Oh._

It was also apparent that she had gone without a bra, but since the dress was one size too large, you had to really look close to notice any apparent change. He hadn't noticed before since her overalls and farm shirt were even looser, but now...she looked tantalizing.

Tara noticed the blush on his cheeks and rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "I tend to go without while farming. Gets all sweaty and clingy, y'know..."

"Yeah, Yoba, that sounds awful," Sebastian manages to squeak out, but Tara doesn't seem to notice his bashfulness and accepts this statement with a snort.

_"_ It really sucks...anyway, we're doing the Solarian Staff scenario? Anything I should know?"

"Just relax and let the Chronicle Keeper Aiden Teakwood guide you," Sebastian intoned, wiggling his fingers as they descended the stairs.

"The esteemed cleric Issindra Stormsoil would be very pleased to learn Master Teakwood's guidance," Tara giggled as Sebastian opened the door.

"And Testiclese the Bountiful will be with you every step of the way!"

Tara let out a bark of laughter at Sam, who was wearing a cheap Roman gladiator Halloween costume and slurping at what looked to be his sixth Joja Cola.

"Oh my Yoba, that's such a shitty name," Tara snorted, gracefully lowering herself to the floor.

"Be grateful he didn't get inspired by Monty Rattlesnake," Sebastian smirked, inhaling a lungful of earthy smoke from his bong. "Otherwise it would be Biggus Dickus the Far-Shooting."

This caused Tara to hoot with laughter, doubling over as she shook with mirth. Sam glared at Sebastian.

"Bro, if you want to flirt with your healer, don't go for my balls like that," he started.

"I don't have to. By your title alone, anyone can tell what your weak point is," Sebastian grinned, looking over at where Tara had immediately faceplanted on the floor, howling.

"Yoba, Sebastian, stop...my stomach fucking _hurts..._ "

"Okay, okay. Let's begin the scenario."

Sebastian placed his bong next to him, before handing the two players their pieces and drawing a card from the stack in front of him.

"Today's quest will take us into the Necromancer's Tower...to try and reclaim the Solarion Staff from the clutches of Dreadlord Xarth."

Sebastian took another hit from the bong, blowing a cloud of smoke over the board as he laced his fingers together.

"Let's begin."

Tara was a little entranced by the display, but Sam just took a long sniff and leaned back onto his cushion.

"Ahhh. Good shit, Seb. I think I'm getting a contact high."

Sebastian chuckled. "Sam, you've never smoked weed once in your life and it shows."

"Yeah, well, the smell is legit kinda calming. Makes you really mellow out."

"Anyway, back to the campaign..."

Sebastian turned out to be a fantastic storyteller. Tara felt immersed in the lore of Solarian Chronicles as she had never been before, almost feeling as if she and the soft-spoken cleric character she played were one and the same. When the time came for the final battle, and both warrior and wizard had fallen, she almost felt ripped between her two companions.

"It's your choice, Issindra," Sebastian said quietly, looking at her almost pleadingly.

"Heal Testiclese and you will get the most mind-blowing sex of your life!" Sam boomed.

Tara snorted. "Easy pick then. I cast Hand of Holiness on Teakwood."

"Roll for ability check. Xarth has Field of Wavering Focus, countering your spell by 5 points of disadvantage."

Tara rolled her twenty-sided die, grinning. "Seventeen. Sebastian, make it count."

"I cast Pure Beam for...YES! Twenty points of damage!"

Sebastian and the rest of the trio whoop as they finish the scenario. Sebastian smiles at Tara, impressed.

"Not bad for your first Pelican Town Scenario. Welcome to Teakwood's Guild."

Tara blushed, bowing. "It is an honor to serve such a wise and practiced mage."

"And Testiclese!"

"Nah, dude. Testiclese can cart his load elsewhere, I only serve one guy at a time."

Sebastian flopped back against the wall, laughing wholeheartedly at Tara's crude joke. As he looked at her, grinning goofily in her white robe, only one thought passed through his mind:

_Yoba, I think I'm falling for her._


	9. Flower dance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara gets a new dress for the Flower Dance, and chooses Seb as her partner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah yeah yeah the real flower dance is glorified squats and ugly outfits. I want to make it more romantic fite me
> 
> HOOHOO WOULD ANYONE LIKE SOME ANGST NEXT TIME? NO? 
> 
> too bad my gremlins that's watchu get

Tara gave a halfhearted glare at her void chicken, Cthulhu. Her ebony hen gazed back at her with its beady red eyes, clucking calmly. Cthulhu was the only one out of her chickens who absolutely hated her guts. Well, what could one expect when a witch flies over your chicken coop and turns one of your chicken eggs into this...thing?!

Tara had tried petting it, only for tiny black tendrils of thorns to come shooting out from underneath its wings, writhing about like some sort of demented chicken Medusa crossed with a blackberry bush.

Cthulhu seemed to like hay well enough, but only after it glared at it for enough time to allow the hay to emit a purple haze that sent Billie and Edwina to sleep.

To top it all off, today was the dreaded Flower Dance, an event which all three of her friends absolutely loathed. It was only still in practice because of Stardew Valley's propensity to follow each and every tradition they had, and despite the outcry from the valley's younger generation, Mayor Lewis had insisted that it remain a core part of the spring festivities.

But it was hard to call it a festivity when you saw your geeky friends who usually smoked pot and played RPG's stuffed into garish blue suits or frilly white dresses and made to perform a waltz that looked like it fit better for an eighteenth-century gala than a spring holiday.

Ah, well. Tara had no choice. She supposed she might as well try and look cute. Even if her own flower gown hadn't been worn by her family in well over eighty years.

"What in the actual fuck is this?"

Tara held up the yellowish lacy dress with a grimace of revulsion. The thing looked like something her ancestors wore that had been packed into the attic for mice to piss on. There was no way in hell she was wearing that unless it had some sort of makeover.

Her eyes lit up. Now _that_ was an idea.

Gathering up the ancient monstrosity, she hightailed it to Emily's house, where the blue-haired girl answered, looking a little confused.

"Hey, Tara, what brings you here?"

Tara thrust out the disgusting lacy dress. "Can't you make this look at least a little more flattering?"

Emily grimaced, gingerly picking up the ratty fabric. "Yoba, Tara, this thing looks like my granny's underpants."

"Same. So? Can you fix it? Make it look nicer?"

Emily gave the dress a once-over. "I can make you a different one," she offered. "Haley has hers remade into a sluttier ballgown every year. That's the only reason she gets the Flower Crown, because she knows she looks great and that makes her dance look better."

Tara smirked. "Am I hearing a plot to steal the throne, Emily?"

Emily's eyes twinkled. "Well, if you want to take that crown, we've got a lot of work to do."

******************

"Welcome to hell," Abigail groaned, pulling at the straps of her dress. "This thing only looks half as good as it did last year, and I still get partnered up with Dweeby McSadass."

Sebastian gave a little snort at that, pulling on his white silk gloves. "Heh, don't worry Abs, at least you have a small amount of decency. Have you seen Haley's dress?"

Abigail rolled her eyes. "More like have I seen the tiny bit of dress she has left. Seriously, how is Mayor Lewis okay with her tits practically giving a meet and greet?"

"It's because she takes the dance so seriously," Sam groaned, walking over to them. Sebastian took one look at him and cackled. His suit design was exactly the same as it had been eight years ago, tacky and looking more at home in a bad eighties movie prom sequence. He thanked the lucky stars that his suit had been specially tailored for this year, with the horrendous tailcoat being scrapped for a silk waistcoat. He had to admit, he looked pretty damn nice. That is, until the dance would begin and he'd make a bumbling fool of himself like he did every year.

"Man, I wonder if Tara's joining us," Abigail wondered. "I mean, I doubt she'll do the dance, based on her grimace whenever she talked about her flower dre-holy Yoba."

Abigail trailed off into a slack-jawed expression. "Guys. _Look."_

Sam and Sebastian turned to look, and Sam gave a low, appreciative whistle.

Sebastian just stared. Every inch of his surroundings seemed to fade away, and there was just her, looking like a goddess in her long, Grecian white dress, embroidered with tiny golden daffodils. She gave a polite smile to all the awestruck civilians and laughed as Sam ran up to her, bowing low and taking her arm to lead her to their little group.

"Tara, what the fuck?" Abigail whined. "How am I supposed to dance with Maru if you come up here looking like the damn sun? Yoba, I'm so gay."

Tara laughed again, giving Abigail a light swat on the arm. "You've actually been partnered up with Maru this year. Sam's going with Penny as usual, Shane with Emily, Elliot with Leah, and Alex with Haley."

"That just leaves Dweeby Mchornyass," Abigail grinned, and Sebastian gave her a glare.

"Yeah, I picked him," Tara mumbled, blushing as she took in Sebastian's outfit. "You look nice."

"So do you," Sebastian said softly.

"Boo! Save room for Yoba!" Abigail shrieked gleefully as Tara gave another melodic laugh. Sebastian felt himself smiling as she turned to greet Elliott with a grin.

"Someone's got a cruuuush," Sam cooed, nudging Sebastian repeatedly with his elbow.

"Fuck off, dude, you've had a thing for Penny for years and you still haven't asked her out," Sebastian retorted, turning pink.

Sam merely stuck out his tongue as Mayor Lewis called all the dancers to their positions.

"Seb, you're going to have to lead, I have no fucking clue what I'm doing," Tara hissed as Sebastian put one hand on her waist, grasping her other hand lightly.

"Hey, that's no problem. I've been doing this shitty dance my whole life," Sebastian smirked, leading Tara in a slow circle across the grass. "You didn't even think to practice?"

"No, I-shit! I'm sorry," Tara groaned as she treads on Sebastian's feet. Sebastian winced before snickering at Tara's expression.

"Tara, relax. Nobody's gonna care if you have two left feet. Look at Abigail. Her poor lesbian heart is getting floored over there."

The two chuckled lightly as Abigail stumbled blindly with Maru's gloved hands clutching hers, looking positively starstruck at Maru wearing the blue suit for once. She glanced over to Sebastian, mouthing 'fuck' at him from where she had tread on Maru's toes for the seventh time.

"Whoa, easy!" Sebastian pulled Tara a little closer to him, as Elliott bumped against Tara with an apologetic wince. Tara nodded at him before looking at Sebastian with a blush. His hand was tight around her back, his other hand on the shoulder that lay bare from the cut of the dress. He was so close...

The music stopped, and just like that, Sebastian let go, groaning with relief and pulling off his silk gloves.

"Every damn year," he sighed. "Sorry, Tara, it wasn't you, you were beautiful, but this tradition really annoys the shit out of all of us."

"SEBASTIAN! HOLY YOBA!"

Abigail raced over to the two of them, flushed and panting. She waved a crumpled piece of paper at them. "Maru gave me her number!"

Tara beamed at her. "That's great! Do you have a date or something?"

"Nah, we're just meeting up at the Stardrop Saloon tonight. Hey, Tara, wanna join?"

Sebastian put a hand on her arm. "You don't have to..."

Tara smiled at him. "I want to."

Sebastian gave her a small, shy grin before hiding back behind his dark curtain of hair.

Tara beamed. Things were finally looking up.


	10. Edge of a cliff, can you feel the wind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara loses all hope when her mother tracks her down. Sebastian digs her out of her self-made pit of darkness and invites her to stay at his place. NOT. PROTECTIVE. AT. ALL.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: Suicide attempt and mentions. Read at your own risk.
> 
> I FUCKIN SAID THERE'D BE ANGST AND HERE IT BE. 
> 
> Seriously, though, if you have problems with these kinds of thoughts, tell somebody or call your local suicide hotline. You are NEVER alone, pal.

"No. Please, Yoba, let this be a nightmare."

But it wasn't. The sleek black car that had driven up to the bus stop was certainly her mother's, all right. And as soon as she saw that vile woman step out in her pearls, cardigan, and pencil skirt, she knew she couldn't stay here.

She had to go. Her mother _couldn't_ sabotage her life again. She just...COULDN'T. Tara had felt freer and more loved in this tiny corner of the world than she had ever felt in years of living with that harpy.

And now she had found her.

Tara shoved her axe into the trunk by her fenced-in plants, grabbing her sword and bolting for the clearing in Marnie's farm. The Secret Woods. No one would find her there. Skirting past the salmonberry bushes and rocks, she crashed through a bush, collapsed on a stump, and just bawled.

It felt so hopeless. Here, she had finally made something of her life, had finally felt like she had built her way upwards with her bare hands, and now it was all being torn away. Her friendship with Abigail, Sam, and Sebastian. Oh, Yoba, how was she going to tell him? 'Hey Seb, my helicopter mom came in and is forcing me back into the corporate rat race so I can finally be the successful businesswoman she wanted to be'? No. No one would take that well.

Unless she didn't have to tell them.

Hardly anyone came back here. Her body would be eaten and digested by slimes before her friends even questioned where she'd gone. And this way, her mother could never hurt her again. She was sure of that.

She took her sword, laying the sharp edge flat against her forearm. It was one cut, right? One simple cut and the shock would make the pain bearable.

Hissing, she drew her blade swiftly across one wrist, blood welling from the fresh cut and running swiftly down her arm. Sniffling with pain and fear, she dipped her arm in the water and watched with a sigh as crimson swirled around in the clear water, attracting a small school of carp.

One more and it'd be done. All she'd need to do was wait until she felt sleepy and it would all be over.

Just one more.

Just...

"Tara?!"

Oh, Yoba, not him. Not now.

"Tara, what the _FUCK_ are you doing?!"

Sebastian dropped his cigarette, smashing it into the earth with his boot before sprinting over to Tara. He yanked her sword out of her grip, tossing it across the clearing with the strength of adrenaline before whipping off his hoodie and pressing it, hard, against the gash.

"Tara, what's wrong with you? You weren't trying-"

He chokes on his own sentence, eyes drifting from her arm to her pale, tired eyes.

"Oh, Yoba, Tara. What happened?"

She leans against him, clutching his shirt with one hand as she whispers brokenly. "My mom's here. She's coming to take me back."

"And _that_ made you want to end your life?! Fucking hell, Tara, if you wanted to stay here you can just stay with me, you don't have to...to...do this."

She nods, shame making fresh, hot tears well up in her eyes. "I'm sorry..."

"Don't you fucking say that, babe. Just...come here."

Before she can even register that Sebastian called her 'babe,' she's pulled to his chest, his arms rocking her, and all her emotions boil over and she's crying like there's no end. She grasps his shirt like a child, listening to him shushing her as she sobs, until finally, she stops, wiping her eyes.

"What do I do now?"

"Well, I'm taking you back home. Not your home, my home. I've...I've been through this before. We need to disinfect the cut, seeing as you got it in pond water, and get some long, clean bandages. It's not lengthwise, so all you need is to let it sit and heal. No stitches unless it's hit an artery or something."

Tara blinks before smiling softly. "Thanks, Seb. For...taking care of me."

He gingerly takes her arm, wrapping it up tighter and tying the sleeves of his hoodie around it so that it's like a makeshift cast. "Keep pressure on that, Tara. Let's...let's get out of here before the slimes come and eat our toes."

Tara laughs quietly, making Sebastian grin before helping her to her feet.

_It's a start,_ he thought.

******************

"Goodness, I didn't know shadow brutes were so resilient! You mean one knockback from that guy can produce a cut this clean? Incredible..."

Tara cast a grateful look at Sebastian, silently praising Yoba for gifting her with a best friend who could spin such lofty, believable fibs. Hey, it wasn't always good, but sometimes, the skill of lying had its advantages.

"Yeah, it was pretty reckless of me," she sighed as Maru finished bandaging up the wound. "So, um, I'd like to stay at your place for a couple of days until this heals. Don't want it getting infected or anything."

"I think that's a great idea," Robin chirped from where she was washing the dishes. "Seb has a pull-out couch downstairs. We can set that up for you. Or, if you're not comfortable, you can take the upstairs couch."

"Nah, thanks. The pull-out sounds fine."

"Do you need to grab anything from your place before you go to bed, or..."

"No, thanks, Robin," Tara smiled, hefting a backpack off her shoulder. "I've got everything right here. It's only a couple of nights."

"Well, you're welcome anytime," Robin smiled, patting her on the shoulder. "And do be careful when you go mining. We care about you, honey."

Tara nearly sniffled all over again. This was what having a mother was supposed to be like. Pity hers would never be as nice.

Sebastian, seeing the look on her face, hurriedly changed the subject. "Hey, Tara, I think I have some Solarian Chronicles comics on my laptop, if you want to read them."

"Sounds great, bud," Tara said cheerfully as she descended the stairs after him.

"So there's a tiny-ass bathroom down here too, if you want to um, get cleaned up or anything," Sebastian murmured, shuffling his feet. "I'll get the bed set up while you change."

"Thanks again, Seb. You've been the best."

Sebastian basked in the genuine warmth of her smile before she closed the door. As he set up the pull-out couch, he felt his heart raced as it finally hit him that the girl he liked was sleeping in the same room as him. The girl he'd had sexy thoughts about would be only a few feet away, and he wouldn't be able to do a single thing about it.

Well, he could. He could go out, buy her a bouquet, ask her to be his girlfriend, and promptly get rejected for being so clingy when she just tried to kill herself. He could jerk it in the shower while she was out, or go out on the pier while it rained and look off at the shore where the Old Mariner stood, clutching his mermaid pendant...

But for now, he thought, as Tara entered the room in baggy gym shorts and a large, oversized tee, he would have to be patient.

He swallowed, glancing at the teasing outline of her perky nipples as she flopped on the bed, burrowing under the sheets.

_Very_ patient.


	11. How to spoon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> HOW TO SPOON
> 
> TITTY IN YA HAND  
> DICK HARD IN THE BUTT  
> KISS YA NECK
> 
> HELL YEAH.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oho lads we getting to that sweet, sweet sexual repression. No actual horizontal tango goes on in here, but let's just say that a meme and a self-insert came together and had a beautiful little child here. 
> 
> BOY I CANNOT WAIT TO GET MY NASTY SMUTTY PAWS ON THESE TWO. IT'S GOING TO BE CALIENTE, BABY.

Tara couldn't sleep. Images of her beak-nosed mother shrieking shrilly at her about how she was such a disappointment kept racing through her mind. She rolled over, glancing across the room at the red lettering blinking slowly at her from across the room.

3:43.

She let out a sigh, letting her eyes drift up to the pitch-black ceiling. She knew that even if her mother took the bait she had provided, there was always a chance she would come back. Her mother was many things, but stupid was not one of them.

She ran her fingers along the tight bandage wrapped around her forearm, glancing over in the direction of Sebastian's bed. At least _someone_ in this unforgiving world cared about her. It hadn't even been a month, yet she felt closer to Seb than anyone in the world.

And Tara was willing to bet iridium on the idea that he felt the same way.

With a defeated grumble upon knowing it would take her a while to fall back asleep, she slipped out the door and up the stairs to get a glass of water. The chill air from the open window made her shudder, and she hurried back downstairs with her glass. Upon her return, however, Sebastian was looking blearily at his phone. He looked up as she entered, giving her a tired smile.

"Hey. Can't sleep?"

"Nah," Tara sighed, placing the empty glass on Sebastian's Solarian Chronicles table. "Just too many thoughts of my mom going on."

Sebastian slid out of his bed, padding over to her. She felt the heat rise to her cheeks as he laid down beside her, squeezing her hand.

"Would having some company help? Just until you fall asleep?"

Tara thought for a moment. They wouldn't be _doing_ anything, just cuddling together. After a traumatic incident, no less. Besides, Seb had a lock on his door. Nobody would make any unwanted predictions.

"Yeah," she whispered. "Yeah, that'd be great."

She felt him turn over, the warmth of his body receding as he inched as far from her as possible so she could have space. Tara instantly missed the warmth and reached over to tug him closer.

"O-oh, you're a cuddler, huh?"

Tara smiled mischievously in the darkness as he awkwardly wormed his arm underneath hers, pulling her flush to his chest. "This good?"

"Perfect," Tara yawned. It was mere moments before she fell asleep, feeling Sebastian's heartbeat against her back.

******************

Tara woke with a jolt as an electric sensation ran up her spine. Frustrated, she glanced at the clock. It was eight in the morning.

"Mnnn...what the..."

Her back arched as the spark of pleasure reappeared, and almost instantly, she found the source of her disturbance.

Sebastian's hand had found its way into the baggy neck of her too-large t-shirt, and his hand was kneading and pinching her nipple with surprising gentleness. His other hand was raking his nails down her thigh, and Tara whimpered as his digits brushed against her mound. That wasn't her only titillating problem, though.

Tara felt the blood rush to her groin as she felt Sebastian's firm cock hard against the cleft of her ass. He was moving in quick, frenzied thrusts, the hold of sleep and the pleasure of oncoming orgasm mingled together in one salacious chase for release.

She clapped a hand over her mouth as Sebastian moaned deeply, his hips having moved just enough to where she could feel his bulge against her womanhood.

Tara tried not to make a sound as he began rutting against her in earnest, her pussy growing wet with the thought of his cock buried inside her, filling her with seed.

Like clockwork, Sebastian let out a breathy gasp, his hand grasping her breast greedily as he trembled, Tara letting out a quiet whimper as she felt something hot and sticky spread against the front of Sebastian's pajamas.

Tara felt his lips pressing lazily against her neck, and she resisted the urge to rub against his fingers that were slowly stroking her thigh. With a quiet squeak, she pried his hand off of her breast, immediately missing the warmth of his palm against her skin. Somehow, still in his drowsy haze of post-orgasmic bliss, Sebastian clung to her even tighter, wrapping both arms around her with a displeased groan.Tara nearly moaned as both his hands found her covered breasts, giving them gentle yet firm squeezes.

Tara flushed as she wriggled out of his grasp, stalking off to the shower. Man, she knew guys could be horny, but never like that. Come to think of it, similar occurrences could have happened in her small collection of late-night flings, but none of them were quite as memorable. Or with the guy she liked, for that matter.

She undressed methodically, noting with a blush that she was quite soaked. As she rubbed herself to completion in the shower, a hand clasped over her mouth to muffle her moans, she couldn't help but groan Sebastian's name as she finally found release.

***************

Sebastian's eyes flutter open. He could have sworn he heard a soft cry, but all that he can hear now is the spray of the shower running and some birds chirping outside. It's about eight twenty. Grumbling, he rolls over to go back to sleep, only to feel an unpleasant cold sensation at the front of his pants.

"Ugh. Not again," he mumbles, examining the mess in his boxers. Sighing resolutely, he removes the soiled articles, tossing them in his hamper before cleaning himself with a tissue and putting some fresh boxers on. He hears the shower turn off and the curtain slide back and buries himself under his own covers, polite even in his sleepy mindset.

He hears Tara enter the room, hears the creak of bedsprings as she lays down again, and smiles a little to himself. He'd almost thank Tara's mom for this if she hadn't also been the cause of Tara nearly leaving him forever. The thought alone makes his heart sink, and he sighs, passing a hand over his forehead.

Why was he so very obsessed with her? It had only been, what, three weeks? Four? Yet already, he's feeling more open and happy than he has ever felt in his twenty-five years of living in Pelican Town. It's as if she'd always been here, as though she'd slotted perfectly into his life like a missing puzzle piece. He knew for certain that he was crazy about the girl, and she about him, but getting her a bouquet and formally progressing to boyfriend and girlfriend seemed too shallow of a decision for him to make when this mother's drama was taking place.

However, once this shitshow with her mom was over, he'd have to ask her out. Maybe she'd say yes, and maybe, just maybe, she'd find that the love she'd wanted was here waiting for her this whole time.


	12. Notes of seduction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara gets the surprise of her life when Sebastian turns out to be a very good singer.

"Tara! YO, TARA!"

Sebastian winced as Sam screamed Tara's name into the mic, the feedback making him clasp his ears in annoyance. "Yoba, Sam, yell a little fucking louder, why don't you. I think some people in Zuzu City didn't hear you."

Abigail snorted. "Besides, what makes you think she'd want to be a side keyboard player? Sebastian's been doing this since high school."

"Because," Sam grinned at Sebastian mischievously, "Sebastian's doing a performance tonight, actually. We're mixing things up!"

Sebastian groaned, dropping his head onto the keyboard with a dissonant chord. "Look, Sam, just because I did edgy covers of Duchess Insanity's Bad Romance doesn't mean I'm willing to relive that phase of my life."

"Yeah, but people liked it," Sam cut in. "And Tara actually told me something very interesting the other day. Get this: she's got a massive weakness for guys who can sing."

Sebastian sat up. "Dude. You're pulling my leg. I know she already has a crush on me, but to have you lay it on even thicker just so I can get hitched? That's not cool, man."

Sam frowned. "I'm not pulling your leg! OY, TARA, GET YOUR BUTT OVER HERE!"

"I'M FORAGING!" Tara howled back at him from the mountain path, chucking a clump of salmonberries at him.

"THOSE GROW EVERYWHERE, YOU IDIOT, C'MON, I WANNA PROVE SOMETHING!"

Sam winked at Sebastian, who scoffed as Tara stomped over, smashing a berry into Sam's forehead. "What do you want, you big blonde man-child? I gotta make my quota."

"Do you like guys who can sing?"

Tara's eyebrows furrowed. "Yeah...didn't I tell you this already?"

"What kind of singing do you like them doing, specifically," Sebastian cut in, glancing to Sam imploringly. "Like, do you like a good range or something?"

"Yoba, yeah," Tara said dreamily, shifting her basket of berries to her hip. "If a guy has a good range, like they can sing both high and low notes, that's how you know they'd serenade you with a ukelele by a fire."

"Aw, so romantic," Sam cooed. Sebastian elbowed him, blushing.

"Anyway, why do you ask?" Tara inquired, popping a salmonberry into her mouth.

"Ah, no reason," Sebastian said quickly. "We were just wondering because we're going to be performing a concert tonight at Zuzu City and Sam, like the nosy twerp he is, wants to help you get laid."

Tara turned a furious gaze to Sam, who shrugged, grinning. "Just...trying to help?" He let out a yelp as Tara jammed a salmonberry up his nose. "Look, Sam, I know we're friends, and you're a real sweet guy, but I believe my romantic interests are none of your business. I can sexually satisfy myself, thank you very much."

Sam whimpered. "My nose stings." Sebastian chuckled.

"Shouldn't have messed with her, dude," he said warningly as he watched Tara stride away.

Damn. If he didn't like feisty girls, he sure did now.

******************

Tara, as it turned out, was pretty fantastic on the electric keyboard and synthesizer. She'd been inducted into piano lessons years ago by her mother, but had quickly rebelled and used her skills to play in a high school pop band. Even Sebastian was impressed at her catchy electronic version of The Music of the Night.

"Wow, that rocked!" Sam cheered. "We'll be the winners of the Pop and Rock Rumble for sure!"

"And the reward is 4000 gold, easily split four ways," Abigail piped up.

"Just make sure you have something in black," Sebastian told Tara. "We're the Shadow Shamans, it's our signature trademark to dress in black."

"And whose idea was that?" Tara grinned.

"Mine, actually," Sam said proudly. "We also wear green glo sticks to represent the kooky green orbs of magic they fire at you."

"Those blind you," Tara frowned.

"Yeah! We blind the fans with our awesome music!"

"Most of it is just covers," Sebastian stage whispered to Tara. "Everyone does covers in the Rumble. It's kind of tradition."

"Ok, so that covers it. Me on guitar, Abs on drums, you on electric keyboard, and we surprise the audience this time by letting Teakwood take the stage!"

Tara giggled at Sebastian, who put his hood over his head, blushing. "You guys use your S.C. names as stage names?"

"Yeah we do!" Sam pumped his fist. "Except mine. I picked a different name. I'm Light Source, Seb is Teakwood, Abs is Nightshade, and you are Stormsoil. Wicked group, if I do say so myself."

"Wait, Seb, _you're_ singing tonight?"

"Yeah," Seb said dismissively, trying to make his voice sound casually disinterested as Tara looked at him in awe. "I did electronic and pop covers back in high school. So...the song we're doing is Alejandro by Duchess Insanity."

Tara twiddled her fingers. "C-can I hear it?"

Sam grinned at her, wagging his finger. "Ah ah ah, it's a surprise to all of us. Seb's been practicing on his own. I mean, I've heard him sing before, and it's pretty snazzy, but as the band leader, I say that I want to surprise you just as much."

Tara looked over at Sebastian, who gave her a tiny wink.

_Uh oh, he's meeting all my standards._

_******************_

_"_ Yoba, that's a lot of people," Tara managed, looking out at the crowd.

"Just imagine them wearing frog outfits," Sebastian offered, straightening his black leather jacket. Tara gave him a quick once over. He looked positively smoldering in his band getup. Besides his black leather jacket and matching black shirt, he was wearing ripped jeans and combat boots that accentuated his already lithe figure. He even had black shades and tiny silver cross earrings, though Tara doubted he wore them for any religious reason. He glanced at her over his shades, and she quickly looked away.

"Hey, it's okay if you're nervous. It's just gonna be this one song, and then there are five other bands. I think we've got a shot at both winning and not humiliating you," he smiled.

"I just hope my hand doesn't slip when I hear you sing," Tara said, her eyes twinkling.

"Oh, you _miiiight_ just need to keep your jaw from hitting the keyboard," Sebastian smirked, brushing back his dark hair. Tara felt her stomach do a backwards flip.

Before she could respond, they heard Sam hyping up the crowd. "And, for tonight, Light Source is stepping back a bit! The Shadow Shamans have a new keyboard artist, Stormsoil, which means tonight, our singer will be our very own Teakwood!"

Tara felt a pang of jealousy as she saw several girls squeal and jump as Sebastian strode on stage. He seemed to take it in stride, though, as he positioned his mic. He turned to Tara giving her a tiny nod, and she returned it before beginning her piece on the synthesizer.

She waited as Sebastian tapped his foot to the beat for a small moment, waiting until Abigail had hit the drums a fourth time before grabbing the mic and beginning to sing.

Tara very nearly stopped playing, but nobody seemed to notice. They were entranced by Sebastian's rich, deep voice twining all the words together as he pushed his hair back, looking at the audience teasingly over his shades as he sang.

Yoba, it was intoxicating, watching him slowly get into the music. He was tapping his foot more firmly now, nodding his head a little and even leaning into the mic every so often. She couldn't be sure, but she thought she saw a small smile on his face as he was singing.

They were almost halfway through the song when Sebastian turned back to her, jolting his head over to the stage. Raising an eyebrow, she set the music to play automatically (it had, after all, been prerecorded in case something went awry) and walked over to him. He met her midstride, taking her hand and leaning her over the piano. Tara flushed. He was singing directly to her, and it seemed to make the fans go wild as he lifted a hand up to brush his thumb over her bottom lip. He was so close, she could see herself reflected in his dark violet eyes...

And then he had whirled back to the crowd, leaning back into the mic, getting his full groove on as he belted out his final notes. He took off his shades, bowing while panting slightly, riding the high of a standing ovation before Sam announced their retreat.

Tara brushed a finger against her lips before Sebastian walked up to her, taking off his earrings.

"Man, I forgot how much of a fucking rush that gives me," he laughed. "You did great. I think I saw a couple of girls start to tear up."

Tara punched his arm lightly. "That's terrible, breaking your fangirl's hearts like that."

Sebastian rolled his eyes. "Hey, after getting embarrassing and entirely unwanted fanmail, I think I deserve to break some hearts. Teakwood has seen enough tits to last a lifetime."

Tara swatted him again as he laughed. She averted her eyes shyly. "You were amazing, Seb. That was like, the hottest thing I've ever heard."

"Oh, really," Sebastian purred, sliding his hand around her waist. "Are you sure you don't want to hear something a little hotter?" Tara blushed. "Um...I..."

Tara squeaked as Sam hollered at them over the crowd, jumping and hooting with joy. "GUYS! WE WON FIRST! HOLY SHIT, WE WON!"

"Whoa, for real?!" Seb removed his hand from Tara's hip, walking over to inspect the blue ribbon and pouch of gold. "Sweet!"

Tara sighed at his retreating back. She'd have to get these damn emotions sorted before her mother came and took this cozy valley life from her.

She had to. For Sebastian's sake.

But how could she stop loving him now when she was so far in the game?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ughh couldn't decide on Seb's singing voice headcanon for a while but I got it! 
> 
> i know, i know, it's not a real guy, it's just lowered pitch, but NongDarn's hot anime portrait mod is just a bunch of pixels, so just deal with it
> 
> For Sebastian's singing voice headcanon, please reference: https://youtu.be/u8DEztCLCQo 
> 
> Tiny silver cross earring Seb based on NongDarn's smoking hot Sebastian portrait mod
> 
> I LAMENT THAT IT'S NOT AVAILABLE FOR SWITCH-


	13. 8-heart event

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An interpretation of Seb's 8-heart event.

Tara frowned as she pulled up her sixth clump of seaweed from the hook of her fiberglass rod. Fishing in the rain was supposed to be easier since the water would drive fish to shallower feeding grounds. But apparently, only the fishing masters like Willy and Elliott were getting any luck.

She gives Elliott a friendly nod as he walks back to his cabin with cooler in hand, looking over her shoulder enviously at the providential catch he's managed to secure.

Out of nowhere, a flash of black catches her eye, and she turns to see Sebastian, hood up, cigarette in his mouth, loping quietly down the sand towards the pier.

Sebastian had always liked coming down to the ocean while it rained. However, every time she'd gather up the courage to plop down beside him with her fishing pole, he'd always give her a dismissive nod or say something like 'The ocean is best enjoyed alone, don't you think?'

If that wasn't a hint to leave him alone with his thoughts, Tara didn't know what was.

Of course, that was before they had gotten to know each other so well. Now that it was established that they both had blossoming romantic feelings, something felt a little different about this visit.

"Hey Seb," she mumbled, fidgeting with her fishing pole. "Just doing some afternoon fishing. Can...can I join you?"

He turned, giving her a small smirk as he eyed her soaking overalls. "I'm surprised to find you out here in the rain."

Tara stuck her tongue out at him as she stood beside him. Sebastian inhaled a lungful of smoke, gesturing with his cigarette to the dark storm clouds rolling in.

"Look at those dark clouds looming over the horizon. I hope they come this way."

Tara couldn't help but laugh at that. "Yoba, you're such an edgelord."

Sebastian poked her cheek. "I can always push you in the ocean. See if you make fun of me then."

Tara snorted. Sebastian gave a deep sigh, flicking the ashes from his cig down onto the wooden planks.

"I like this weather because it makes everyone disappear, you know?"

Tara looked down at her sopping wet clothes, scoffing at him. "Gee, I wonder why."

Sebastian gave a little chuckle before his face turned serious again. "Being around people makes me anxious. The rain...just sort of herds them all away, and I can be out here with my thoughts. It's just...people have too much to say sometimes, you know?"

Tara folds her arms. "Big mood, man. People can just be the worst. I had to get noise-canceling headphones for a while just because the sound of conversation was too much."

"Yeah," Sebastian acknowledged. "People just...scare me." He gave her a shy smile. "I don't feel that way around you, though."

Tara swallowed as he put his hand on hers. "Thanks."

They stood in silence for a while, Tara's heart beating faster than a hummingbird's.

Sebastian looked up at the dark clouds again, sighing. "We're getting soaked."

He reached into his hoodie pocket, pulling out a collapsible umbrella and opening it. Glancing over at a shivering Tara, he smiles bashfully.

"Here, there's room for two."

Tara's eyes meet his as he extends his hand in invitation. Shyly, Tara scoots closer to him until she's beneath the small canopy, as far from him as the little space will allow.

"Oh, come on, you've gotta be freezing," Sebastian laughs, and uses his free hand to pull her closer. Tara gives a little 'meep' of surprise, blushing to her ears as Sebastian laughs harder.

"You're really cute, y'know. If it weren't for all of this mom business making me worry that you're going to leave Pelican Town, I'd totally get a bouquet for you," he says softly.

Tara feels her heart beat out a samba in her chest as she processes these words. Bouquets in Pelican Town were synonymous with asking someone out, and it was almost an official declaration that the two involved were dating and thus were no longer available.

"But hey, I'll wait as long as it takes for you to get comfortable with that," he interjects, noticing her flushed face and bemused expression.

Tara thought over his words as she felt her heartbeat rise upon the close proximity to Sebastian. She could practically feel his stubble on her cheek.

Technically, her mother didn't have any way of knowing whether she was really here without interrogating the residents. Seeing as she had quietly told Mayor Lewis the situation and asked him to misdirect her mother to the faraway town of Rainbow Shell Shores, she doubted her mother would come looking for her a second time. Her mother was persistent, though. Despite that nagging feeling of wrongness in her head, she decided to give...whatever _this_ was a try.

_Fuck it. Why shouldn't I be happy with the guy I've fallen for? And if Mom tries to take me away again, I'll fight her tooth and nail. I'm 22. Hardly her little girl anymore. I have a life, and I make my own choices. And I choose Sebastian._

_"_ I...wouldn't mind getting to know you a bit more, Seb," she murmured, glancing up at him. His unusual violet eyes met hers in an expression of surprise.

"Really?"

"Really."

He grinned, and Tara realized she'd rather chain herself to the lowest cavern in the Mines to dieif she didn't get to see that grin every day.

"Okay then."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHY SHOULDN'T THEY BOTH BE HAPPY? 
> 
> work it out, you fools


	14. Heart strategy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bouquet is given and a date is planned.

Ever since Tara and Sebastian had unofficially declared their crushes on each other reciprocated, Sebastian felt like he was walking on air. Even when spring made its way into summer, Sebastian's least favorite season, all he could do was smile and wave jubilantly every time he saw Tara's face.

He even _looked_ like he was walking on air. Sam and Abigail glanced at each other suspiciously when Sebastian promptly sat down at their little booth at the Stardrop one night and leaned his head on Tara's shoulder, allowing her to run her fingers through his feathery black hair.

"So...did you get the bouquet or did he?"

"I got the letter from Pierre's advertising that it was available," Tara said with a grin. "As for the actual bouquet, who knows? It's gonna be soon, though."

Abigail squinted at Tara. "You'd better be. No one hurts my boy. Unless you wanna catch these hands."

"Big deal," Tara giggled. "You keep your nails short all the time."

Abigail turned pink as Sebastian laughed, leaning even further onto Taras's shoulder. Sam leaned over to Abigail, whispering in her ear.

"So do you think the wizard or the Junimos put him under a spell or something? Because I've never seen him this happy."

"Nah," Abigail said after a moment, watching the two happily discuss an episode of Cave Saga 2X. "Unless that spell is looooove. In which case, yeah, they totally did."

Sam and Abigail looked on as Sebastian gazed at Tara with lidded eyes, clearly and unquestionably smitten, until Sam slammed his soda down on the table.

"Okay, this is weird now. Seb, you've been my best friend for years and I've _never_ seen you this cheerful. It's weird, right? Am I the only one who thinks this is weird? Like, you're grinning. Sebastian never grins unless he's blitzed out of his mind."

"Why am I grinning?" Sebastian asked to no one in particular. "Huh, I guess I have been unusually happy lately."

"Your ass is lovestruck, my man," Sam says, chugging his Joja Cola. "Get the girl a bouquet!"

Sebastian flushed. "I'm getting to it," he said defensively, only for Tara to clear her throat.

"I, um, may have beaten you to it," she confessed.

Sebastian blinked. "Wha-"

He trailed off into a stunned silence as Tara reached into her backpack, pulling out a slightly crumpled bouquet of fresh flowers. Abigail gasped, covering her mouth with both hands, while Sam sprayed his cola all over the table.

"OHHHH SHIIIIIIT!"

"Sam, keep it down," Tara hissed. "Yoba, Seb, I'm sorry, I was going to tell you earlier, in private..."

"You...want to get more serious?" Sebastian interrupted, looking completely dazed.

"Y-yeah?"

Sam gave a high-pitched squeal as Sebastian pulled Tara into a hug, grinning.

"I feel the same way," he whispered into her ear, before giving her a quick peck on the cheek.

Tara promptly melted into the booth cushions, her face as red as a cherry.

Abigail extended a hand to Sam. "Pay up. Twenty gold on the bet that Tara gives the bouquet first."

"Man, Seb, you need to act on romance for once in your life," Sam whined, handing over the gold as Sebastian scoffed at him.

"The day I kiss my girlfriend on the lips in front of you is the day hell freezes over."

Sam gasped dramatically, covering his heart with one hand. "GIRLFRIEND?!"

"Look, dumbass, when a bouquet is given, it means we're officially dating. It's not that hard."

"I know," Sam sighed. "It's just so cute hearing you say it."

"Fuck off..."

*******************

Tara glanced over at Sebastian, who was cradling the bouquet as if it were a newborn baby while they walked to Mulberry Farm. He looked at her with shining eyes.

"Honestly, I don't care that you gave this to me in front of Sam," he said, smiling shyly. "The fact that I have it is all that matters."

"Seb, you big softie," Tara cooed, going to swat him on the arm as usual when he caught her hand with his, entwining their fingers together with a grin.

"Gotcha."

"Seb, that's cheating!" Tara squeaked, cheeks growing hot.

"Nope. I'd say that was a well-placed strategy. Teakwood the Great Mage is well-known for his strategies."

"Oh yeah? Then eat this! Stormsoil's Bewitched Projectiles!"

Tara nabbed a handful of leaves off of a nearby bush and pelted them at her boyfriend, who just laughed and shielded himself with the bouquet.

"Your attacks are fruitless when blocked by my Shield of Lasting Love," he smirked. Tara blushed.

"It's just a bouquet."

"Not to me," Sebastian said, turning to face her. They were on the path by the bus stop clearing, and the only light was that from the small torches Tara had placed by the fence to light the way home. Sebastian's eyes were soft as he tucked the bouquet under his arm, taking Tara's other hand in his.

"This bouquet means a new start for me. I don't even know about Zuzu City anymore, not when something as important as this is happening right here. I really, _really_ like you, Tara, and I want to see where this goes."

"I really, really like you too," Tara mumbled as he squeezed her hand affectionately.

"So, um, do you want to maybe get pizza or something at the Stardrop tomorrow?"

Tara smiled. "Like a date?"

Sebastian rolled his eyes. "No, like a completely platonic dinner. Yes, like a date!"

"How about we get the pizza to go, crash at your place, and watch season two of Cave Saga 2X?"

Sebastian smiled, cupping her face in his palms. "That sounds perfect," he hummed, before giving Tara a chaste kiss on the forehead. "'Night, Tara."

"G'night, Seb."

As Tara walked the short route back to her farm, she felt a slow grin spread across her face.

She was utterly, helplessly in love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAHA I DID ME FINAL NOW THE HYPERFIXATION COMPELS ME TO WRITE
> 
> honestly revisiting these moments from the game is so fun and writing it out as my own headcanons is even more fun so yee i'm excited


	15. First date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seb and Tara go on their first date, but just when the night starts to look promising, a magical omen appears.

"Abigail, it's just a date. I'm sure Sebastian won't care what color shirt I'm wearing. Pretty sure with those cuts, anyway, he's going to be entirely focused on something else."

Abigail examined the low-cut pink and scarlet t-shirts. "Well, you _did_ get these for summer, right? Your bonkhonagahoogs are bound to get sweaty. I know mine do."

Tara snorted with laughter. "You're ridiculous, Abs."

Abigail shrugged. "It's a living. So, melon or scarlet?"

"Let's go melon."

"Yas, girl. Melon looks sweet on you."

"Eh, I think it clashes," Tara said offhandedly as she slipped on the form-fitting garment. "How do I look?"

Abigail gave her a big thumbs-up and a grin. "Seb's gonna freak."

***************

Sebastian considered himself in the mirror. He hadn't pulled this look out since he was in high school. He was wearing a short-sleeved black shirt, black jeans, red high-tops, and the black bracelets he had gotten from Sweltering Subject a few years back. He gave a wry smile as he thought about how Tara might react to this outfit.

Of course, knowing her, he'd probably need to make the first moves in terms of physical contact. Not that he minded, but he wanted to make sure that she was comfortable.

Tying his signature hoodie around his waist, he slipped out the door and headed to the Stardrop. Upon arriving, he plopped into his usual booth while Emily headed over to grab his drink order.

"Abigail's the one helping her get ready," she confided as she brought back the glass of water. "She did ask me for pointers on makeup, though."

"She needn't bother," Sebastian replied, sipping his water. "Tara's already gorgeous."

Emily sighed, placing a palm on her chest. "If only all men were as sweet as you, Seb...oh! Here she is!"

Sebastian turned to the door, smiling at Tara as she strode over to the booth. He eyed her figure approvingly; the outfit she had chosen accentuated her curves quite nicely. Especially the low-cut pink shirt she had chosen.

"Hey, beautiful," he said as she slid next to him. "How's farming going?"

"It's okay," she sighed, after ordering an orange soda. "I'm trying to finish some Junimo bundles so we can run that slimy pube Morris out of town. The quality crops one is taking forever. I only have two quality melons right now!"

"I'll say," Sebastian purred, eyes flicking down to her chest. Tara flushed, crossing her arms, but he could tell she was pleased. She'd wanted him to notice.

"Anyways, I only go into that JojaMart to get instant noodles and other essentials, but every time I do, that squat little fuck asks me for a membership and won't stop following me around. I swear, I think the perv is only doing it to check me out."

Sebastian felt a flicker of rage surge through him. "Do you want me to go with you?"

"Nah," Tara said with a grin. "I just put in some green contacts on store days and tell him to keep several paces away from me or the forest spirits will smite him."

Sebastian laughed. "That's my girl."

Tara gave him a shy smile as blue eyes met purple. He brushed aside a lock of blue hair, leaning in, when all of a sudden their pizza arrived. Sebastian cursed inwardly.

Tara just grinned like a feral wolf, rubbing her hands, and nabbed two slices of the pepperoni pizza as if it were her last meal on Earth.

Sebastian nibbled delicately on his own slice as he watched Tara gleefully scarf down slice after slice with ravenous speed. It reminded him somewhat of when he and Abigail had dated before Abigail had figured out her sexuality. He smiled at the endearing image of Tara licking parmesan cheese off her fingers before he offered to get the check. They paid for their meal and left, hand in hand, to walk back to Tara's farm.

"That was really nice, Seb," Tara commented, leaning on him. "And to think, I thought I overdressed."

"Nah," Sebastian replied. "You look lovely."

"I, um, picked out this shirt for you," Tara said softly. Sebastian looked at her, noting the not-so-subtle way she was pushing her chest out as she spoke.

"It suits you," Sebastian murmured, sliding one arm around her waist. "Makes your chest look great," he whispered, and Tara gave a little shudder of delight.

She turned to him as they neared the porch of her farmhouse. "So, um, do you want to hang out for a little bit? Maybe watch an episode of Cave Saga 2X?"

Her eyes looked eager for something more, however. Sebastian smirked, sliding his hands idly up her hips and delighting in the resulting shiver.

"Sex on the first date night, babe? Who would've thought you'd be so dirty," he murmured to her, running his hands up to brush the tops of her breasts. Tara let out a breathy sigh, cupping her hands over his, a plea to continue.

"Do you think I'm being too forward?" She whispered, as Sebastian pressed a gentle kiss to her neck.

"I mean, this certainly isn't what I was expecting," Sebastian hummed, his hands wandering to her ass and giving it a firm squeeze. "But if it's what you want, then I'd be happy to-"

He was cut off by a piercing cackle from above them. Sebastian's eyes widened as a tall, dark figure swept over their heads on a broomstick, laughing maniacally.

"What the fuck? Is that the Wizard's ex-wife?"

Tara gave a gasp as the witch fired a jet of purple light inside the window of her coop, as frenzied squawks and clucks emanated from inside. "My chickens!"

As Tara ran inside her coop to check on her fowl, Sebastian sighed, taking out a cigarette and lighting it.

"Cockblocked by a witch," he muttered sourly to himself as he breathed in the smoke. "Whoop de fucking do."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bro i got cockblocked by a witch bro when am i ever gonna get that puss
> 
> -Sebastian, probably
> 
> the smut's coming, i swear  
> and when it does it won't stop coming (ba dum tss)
> 
> Seb's outfit design (from the waist up) portrayed by digitalscratch-arting on tumblr


	16. Dark clouds looming

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara returns to a dark place after a visit to the Wizard reveals some heavy news. But a caring Sebastian lets her know that he's not going anywhere.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: self-harm and mentions of self-harm.
> 
> Again, if you have experienced these thoughts or actions, at least talk to somebody, no matter who. Someone cares about you. <3
> 
> Also does ANYONE think the Skull Cavern serpents look like Aztec folklore or is that just me?

Tara glared at the black egg with red speckles lying innocently in a clump of hay. Just this morning it had been a large white egg, and she had been over the moon about Edwina getting to raise a fluffy white lookalike. Now, it was going to end up an ebony beast like Cthulhu, whose eggs looked identical to this one.

_That damn witch._

Gathering up the egg, she stalked off in the direction of Cindersap Forest to ask the wizard if any reversals could be made. If anyone knew the witch, it'd be M. Rasmodius.

Her mood wasn't improved by the fact that she totally could have gotten dicked down by Sebastian last night if this interruption hadn't occurred. He seemed pretty interested in it himself, until the appearance of the witch had, well, flagged him down, so to speak.

She was gonna give that witch a piece of her mind.

The wind howled, and Tara blinked, realizing that her anger was affected her Junimo powers again. As she had finished more and more bundles, Tara had discovered that the forest powers imbued within her by the mystical brew Rasmodius had given her were slowly developing. She could run faster, find more forageable items, and, most excitingly, she could summon a threatening green aura to ward off any unwanted forest golems.

She wondered what would happen when all the bundles were complete. Rasmodius _had_ mentioned something about an apprentice whenever she delivered solar or void essence to him. Maybe this essence of the forest would finally awaken some arcane magic.

For now, all it seemed to do was make extremely high-quality grapes and sweet peas appear everywhere she seemed to be. Oh, well, there could be worse powers.

Tromping up the stone steps to the Wizard's Tower, she knocked briskly until she heard a gravelly voice say, "Enter!"

Without hesitation, she strode into the little, green-tinted room, plopping the void egg on the table in front of Rasmodius, who peered at it from beneath his garish purple cowboy hat.

"Griselda's work?"

"If you're asking whether or not a witch did this, then yeah, she flew over my coop and zapped my damn eggs."

"Hnn," Rasmodius grumbled, picking up the egg. "I'm afraid her transmutation spells are quite irreversible. She always was better at those than me."

Tara gave a huff of frustration. "I can always turn the thing into mayonnaise."

"Hm. Yes, that sounds like a good idea. Emgor the goblin craves the stuff."

"Emgor?"

"Griselda's bodyguard. He's our...restraining order, if you will. Keeps me from entering. That and a Spell of Impenetrable Fortitude."

Tara nodded, hardly listening, as she scooped up the egg. "I brought you some void essence. Sourced from the Quetzalcoatls at the Skull Caverns."

"Ah, excellent!" Rasmodius beamed, accepting the dark purple orb of energy contained in a small glass jar. "This contains potent arcane energies. It will prove useful in my research."

"Uh-huh," Tara said distractedly, turning to leave.

"And be careful, my dear. Something deadly is approaching."

Tara stopped, foot halfway out the door.

"What did you say?"

Rasmodius gestured to his cauldron. "I can see the futures of all in Stardew Valley. That includes yours. You have a terrible figure in your past, one who looms over you like my tower looms over this forest."

"You mean my mom?" Tara whirled around, eyes wide with fear. "Does she know I'm still here? Is she coming back?"

"That I cannot tell you. Know this, my child, whatever figure has been suppressing your quality of life will not overcome you. You will find the strength to beat it, both from outside and within."

Tara just stared at him until he gave her that mysterious smile from behind a green-tinted mist.

"Well, I must continue my research. Farewell, my dear."

And with that, he gently nudged her onto the front step and closed the door with a soft click.

Tara stood in a stunned silence, clutching her void egg. She'd always had the nagging feeling that her mom was too smart for this plan to work. And now, it seemed, she was right. As hot tears threatened to spill over onto her cheeks, she walked slowly back to her farm to think.

*******************

Sebastian glanced over at his phone in concern. Even with all her farming duties, Tara usually would take time out of her day to text him. Something had to be up.

Acting on impulse, he grabbed an overnight bag, tossing in some clothes, books, and his Tinendo Swap that he often played with Tara. After a moment's thought, he grabbed the first-aid kit that was under his bed and packed that in as well.

_Better safe than sorry._

"See you, Mom," he hollered before leaving. "I'm spending the night at the farm with Tara. Her chickens got cursed or something so she needs a little extra help." Well, it wasn't _totally_ untrue.

Robin swung her head around the doorframe with a grin. "That's really sweet of you, Seb! Here, why don't you bring some of this chocolate cake that Evelyn made and some sashimi? I'm sure eating her own crops and instant ramen can get pretty boring. Say hi to her for me!"

"Thanks, Mom," Sebastian sighed as his mom gave him a big kiss on the cheek, packing some tupperware into his backpack before waving him out the door.

He checked his phone again. Nothing.

Glancing around anxiously, he broke into a slight jog down the mountain path, arriving at Tara's house in about ten minutes less time than usual. He knocked on the door, panting, but there was no answer.

"Tara? Babe? Are you okay in there?"

Still nothing.

Sebastian inhaled sharply, pushing inside and glancing around quickly. He let out the smallest of sighs as he saw Tara's feet curled up on her bed, with the upbeat tune of an old Medic Whom episode playing in the background. Dropping his backpack, he rushed in to find her morosely eating a pint of vanilla ice cream in nothing but her sports bra and gym shorts. Ordinarily, this would have made Sebastian blush and cover his eyes, but the noticeable tear tracks on her cheeks and the small, neat cuts on her arms still oozing blood made him pause and take notice.

"Tara, what's going on?"

"Rasmodius basically told me my mom knows the whole thing was a wild goose chase and she's coming back for me," Tara mumbled between bites of ice cream.

"Yoba, that bitch," Sebastian growled, kneeling beside her and gently taking hold of one of her arms, inspecting it. "Okay. Here's what's gonna happen. I'm gonna disinfect these, wrap them up, then you're going to put on a shirt or something while I hide all the sharp things I can find."

Tara opened her mouth to protest, but Sebastian held up his hand. "When you need a tool, just let me know, okay? But until further notice, that's what I'm going to do. And then you're going to eat something substantial and go out to the secret woods with me and we can just...talk it out. If you feel like it. Or we can just watch the slimes fight over territory with our slime charmer rings equipped. You just need to get out for a little bit, clear your mind. It helps. Trust me, baby, it helps."

Tara gave him a watery smile before flinging her arms around his neck, giving him a firm kiss on the lips before cuddling into his neck. Sebastian just knelt there, stunned, before wrapping his arms around her, gently rubbing her back.

"How is it you always know how to take care of me like you've known me for years?"

"Because I know what it feels like to think nobody cares," Sebastian responded. "Having at least one person care about you and demonstrate that care is often the best way to move forward when shit goes south."

"Wise words from a wise mage," Tara laughed. "Seb, you're the actual fucking best."

"I know," he grinned, making her giggle. He pulled back, wiping a tear away from her eye.

"Let's do something about your arms, okay?"

Tara gave a little frown, tears of shame welling up in her eyes, but Sebastian tilted her chin up, kissing her on the nose.

"None of that, babe. It's okay, I'm here."

Tara let out a slow breath as he helped her up and dug out some rubbing alcohol and bandages, methodically cleaning the small, taunting incisions she had made in a rush of panic.

_It's gonna be okay. Someone cares._


	17. Glowing beauty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian confides in his mom about how he feels about Tara, and the happy couple share their first night of the moonlight jellies.

Sebastian's unusually happy the next day. He can't quite put a finger on it, but something about the cloudy skies and the crisp wind make him grin.

His mom notices when he actually engages Maru in conversation, listening with something akin to interest as she describes her latest experiments.

As Maru heads off to her job at the clinic, Robin gives her son a warm smile.

"Tara's really got you roped in, huh, Sebby?"

Sebastian flushed, pretending to be interested in the butter dish. "Maybe a little," he confessed.

Robin sat down by him, wrapping one arm around her son's shoulder. "I couldn't be happier for you, Seb. She seems like a fine young woman."

Sebastian fiddled with his hoodie sleeves before looking at his mom shyly. "This might be a weird thing to ask, Mom, but when did you realize you were in love with Dad?"

Robin let out a slow breath. She'd never talked about her ex-husband since they'd divorced, as it had been a sloppy, painful affair that had left Sebastian's poor heart in shambles. Combined with the fact that Demetrius hadn't been the best father figure to her firstborn, she wondered what would possess her son to inquire after his father when it was he who had essentially made him the dark, brooding type he was today.

"We grew up together, here, in Pelican Town," she began hesitantly. "I fell in love with him the moment I saw him, sitting by the river, quieter than a moonless night. There was always something about a quiet man hiding behind a mask of unfeeling coldness that made me want to...I don't know, break him open. Show him the world wasn't as unfeeling as it seemed to be."

Sebastian smiled, tracing patterns on the wooden table. "Maybe that's what drew Tara to me."

Robin laughed. "I see a lot of me in her. Maybe that's why I'm rooting for you both so much. So you can seize the chance I never did. See, I told you your father left me pregnant with you around college, and I dropped out to raise you. Looking back, I should have seen it. He didn't want to be stuck in this place where everything hinges on the past, where the traditions are the same every year. I tried to show him that life could still be exciting in a small town, that Stardew Valley is full of the unexpected. But in the end, he didn't cave in, and we split."

There was a sorrowful silence before Sebastian spoke.

"I...I guess I used to think that this place didn't hold anything for me either. Same old routine of patching codes, playing pool, going out for a smoke. But I think Tara's broken through that. She's showing me that life isn't always what you'd expect it to be, whether or not you think it's going to be exciting or not. There's a lot more in this town to see, now that she's opened up my eyes to see it. And...I dunno, Mom, but I think I love her. Like I really think she's the one."

Robin pulled her son into a hug, sniffling. "Oh, Sebby," she whispered, overcome with joy, before pulling back to look into her son's eyes.

"Just make sure that this is something you both talk about. Communicating what you both want from each other is the best way to know if you're right for each other. Between you and me, Sebastian, I really hope she's the right one for you too."

**************

Their second date night was going to be absolutely perfect. It was the twenty-seventh night of summer, where the enchanting Moonlight Jellies' migration path would pass right through Stardew Valley. It was one of Sebastian's favorite local holidays besides Spirit's Eve, because something about the iridescent, glowing creatures left him feeling a sense of hope and awe that he cherished each year.

And now, the woman he loved would get to experience that with him.

"Seb! Yoba, I've been looking for you everywhere, what are you doing skulking back here?"

Sebastian grinned as Tara skipped up to him, twining her hand in his.

"Waiting for you to find me," he said softly.

"Aww, you're so cute and mysterious," Tara cooed, before stepping back a little bit. "What do you think of my outfit? A floating skull dropped this in the mines and it reminded me of you."

Sebastian looked her up and down before giving an amused smirk. The shirt was black and baggy, with a meticulously detailed skull breathing flames sewn in the center.

"It suits you, hon," he said cheerfully before pulling her unexpectedly to his side. "Whoa!"

"What? Did you see one?"

"I thought I saw something down there...something big. Something dark," Sebastian intoned mysteriously, wiggling his fingers. Tara leaned out, peering into the water.

"Probably a mother jelly. Couldn't be a crimsonfish, those things live deep on the ocean over by the East Pier."

Sebastian snorted, pulling his girlfriend close again. "You're no fun. I was trying to scare you," he joked.

Tara gave him a toothy grin. "Scare me? I have a lava katana and the rings of slime charming and iridium! If anything scares me, it'd have to be if the desert dragon got resurrected!"

At that moment, a foghorn sounds and Tara jumps, cursing. Sebastian laughs and she cuddles into his side with a pout as Mayor Lewis lights the torch.

"Any minute now," Sebastian mumbles, and Tara gives a little gasp of delight as many multicolored orbs appear, glowing softly beneath the ocean waves.

"They're beautiful," she whispers, looking at the bioluminescent tendrils lazily floating behind each jellyfish as they make their way further out to sea. It's oddly soothing, listening to the ocean waves with Sebastian's warm body against her back, and she sighs, closing her eyes to just bask in the beauty of the moment.

"Hey, look, I think I see the green one!" Vincent shouts excitedly from the pier.

Tara opens her eyes amidst soft, wonderstruck gasps from the other villagers to see the ethereal sea-green jellyfish floating right in front of her. It hovers delicately in its watery home as Tara gazes at it, then extends a glowing green tendril above the water. Tara reaches for it, entranced, as a tiny light connects her finger and the jellyfish's tentacle. It retreats, almost bashfully, and Demetrius leans down with his clipboard. 

"Fascinating. I've never seen it do that before."

"It was the Junimos' magic. Tara's attuned to Stardew Valley, both to land and sea," Willy claimed.

"Regardless of external phenomena, this means you've likely got external DNA on you," Demetrius said excitedly. "Why don't you come back to the lab tomorrow and I'll run some tests."

"Sounds good, Demetrius," Tara says with a grin as he turns to leave.

Alone with Sebastian once again, she leans back against his chest, their hands tangled together on her lap.

"This is wonderful, Sebastian."

"Yeah," Sebastian smiles, looking down at Tara as he smooths a lock of blue hair away from her forehead. "Yeah, it really is."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YEEE the smut chapter is closing in! ten heart event, mama drama, then we get some of that careless whisper shit. 
> 
> the whole jellyfish thing was inspired by the fact that the sea-green jellyfish appeared right in front of me and Sebby this festival, so i took it as a writing omen.


	18. 10-heart event

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An interpretation of Sebastian's ten heart event. There's a bit of physical and verbal abuse in this chapter regarding Tara's mom, so read at your own risk.

Tara thrashed to get away from the vicelike grip of her mother's immaculately manicured hand, but she was simply too strong.

"Let me GO! I'm twenty-two, for Yoba's sake! Just let me live my life!"

Helen Edith Waters scoffed. "And how do I know that your life isn't being led down a baseless, completely trivial path that I need to guide you off of? As I've done many times before?!"

Tara glared icily at her mother. "If it weren't for you marching up to the campus and forcing me to change my major, I'd be successful. I failed out because YOU were in the way, always breathing down my neck."

"I was keeping you safe! Ensuring you had a brighter future!"

"Brighter future?!" Tara cries. "Working a minimum wage, dead-end job is a bright future?! I could never move up in Joja Corp. and you know it! You just want to feel like you're in control-"

Tara's mother strikes her full across the face.

"You listen to me. You do not talk to me like this. I am your mother, and you are my daughter, and you will obey me. The rules of this family apply even when we are not at home. So be quiet like a good girl and let me fix this."

Tara curls in on herself as her mother drags her to that dreaded black van, the one with whatever two burly men she's hired to keep Tara secure and in the same space as her at all times.

It's only when she jolts awake that she realizes she's alone, her mother isn't here, and she's safe.

For now.

She thinks back on Rasmodius' warning, clutching her scarred arms. Her mother is a persistent, toxic avalanche of a human, fighting tooth and nail to prove she's right or in control. She's the reason why her dad left, and she wouldn't be surprised if his death was a cover-up by her to control Tara's every move like a puppet.

Letting out a shaky breath, Tara slips on some sweats and sandals, opening the chest with her many rings and selecting the iridium band. She looks at the clock. It's about ten o'clock, so that means she's been sleeping for only thirty minutes.

She wonders if Sebastian's up. Probably. Her boyfriend is notorious when it comes to following a proper sleep schedule. Often, he'll be out by the lake smoking until midnight, although recently, he's been chewing nicotine gum since Tara started pestering him about his smoking habit.

Wearily, Tara sheaths her sword and heads outside quietly, following the trail of dimly glowing torches she has set on the mountain path. When she arrives at Sebastian's house, however, she's surprised to see him mounting his motorbike.

"Oh, hey Tara," he says with a smile. "I was just about to head out. Hop on, I want to show you something.'

Tara swallows. "I don't know how to mount it."

"Okay, it's not hard. Just throw one leg over and keep your balance."

Tara follows his instructions, blushing a little as she wraps her arms around his waist.

"Let's ride, babe," Sebastian yells over the roar of the engine, and he kicks off, speeding down the road. Tara's squinting against the wind, every now and then giving a little shriek of terror as Sebastian makes a sharp turn. He seems to find this amusing.

"Too fast for ya?" he yells over the whistling wind.

"Fuck you, Seb!" Tara howls, grasping his waist like a lifeline as she eyes the steep drop behind the metal road barriers.

Sebastian laughs as they turn down a lonely paved road, until finally, they make it to a rocky hill.

Sebastian parks by a blackberry bush, stretching out his hand to Tara as he dismounts, and she gratefully accepts it as she dismounts the bike, wobbling like a baby horse.

"This is what I wanted to show you," Sebastian whispers, gesturing outward. Tara gasps. It's Zuzu City, small and twinkling in the distance, with the traffic barely visible from their secret precipice.

"I come here when I want to get away from everything and just...think," Sebastian sighs, leaning against the mountain face as he pulls out a cigarette and lights it. Tara nods dumbly.

"So, what do you think?" he says softly. Tara pulls a face at him as the acrid scent of cigarette smoke reaches her nose.

"I _think_ you should quit smoking," she says teasingly, plucking the cigarette from between his lips and crushing it underfoot. Sebastian looks mildly annoyed at first, but then he laughs a little.

"Ugh, you sound just like Mom," he snorts. "You're right, though. I'm addicted to these things. It's not good."

They gaze out at the city lights in somber silence for a moment until Sebastian clears his throat, taking Tara's hand shyly. "You know, the city used to draw me in, but now, I'm finding myself happier here, at home in the valley. With you."

Tara leans against his shoulder. "That's sweet. And hey, you can find programming jobs available from home."

"Yeah. Listen, Tara, there's something else I wanted to tell you."

Tara feels her heart freeze in her chest and she looks up to Sebastian, eyes wide with fear. He senses her discomfort and pulls her in encouragingly.

"Nothing bad...it's just, well, um, I never take girls up to this place. In fact, you're the only one."

Tara exhales slowly before nudging Sebastian with her hip. "Finally thinking about freaky outdoors sex where no one can eavesdrop, huh?"

"No," Sebastian laughs, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's just...whenever I pictured myself staying in the valley, I always assumed it would be just me, alone, while all my friends go out and get jobs. But with you, I...you make me _want_ to stay, you know?"

He turns to face her, and Tara can see by the light of her ring that he's blushing, fidgeting with his hands a little. And all of a sudden, she knows what he's going to say next.

"Y-you know what I'm trying to say, don't you?"

Tara nods, closing her eyes as he puts his trembling hands on her waist, and it feels as though all time stops when his lips meet hers.

Their kisses before have never been like this, either hot and full of unbearable need, or chaste and light on the cheek or another part of the face. This kiss...it feels like everything Sebastian's wanted to say, every feeling he can't put into words is diluted into it as he pulls her close against the mountain.

"I love you," he whispers as they break apart, stroking Tara's hair. "Yoba, I love you so much."

Tara feels the tears of joy leaking out from beneath her eyelids before she even opens her eyes. She looks up at Sebastian, leaning her face into his palm as he wipes away her tears with his thumb. Nothing matters more than this moment, and the words she's about to say.

"I love you too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> god this is so cute imma cry


	19. Awash in delight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seb and Tara try to get it on in the bathhouse. Unforeseen complications involving farm chores ensue.

After the events on Sebastian's secret cliff, he and Tara were practically inseparable.

The majority of the farmer's days now consisted of visiting Sebastian in his small basement room and doing nothing but watch the several seasons of Medic Whom or Cave Saga 2X amidst a small cloud of pot smoke. Summer turned to fall, then fall to winter, until somehow a full two years had passed since Tara had arrived. And through it all, Sebastian was with her nearly twenty-four seven. Even in the summer, he couldn't help but light up whenever he saw his girl.

The only thing neither of them were happy about was the lack of sexual encounters in their relationship. Oh, they tried frequently, but it always ended up in a hurried handjob whenever Demetrius or Robin was heard or some uttered curse at the remembrance of a forgotten farm chore. Since then, the two would just hang out in Sebastian's room doing entirely innocent things, playing Solarian Chronicles, Tinendo Swap, or partaking in fully clothed makeout sessions until things got too hot and heavy.

Robin would sometimes lure them out with the promise of lunch, and as she leaned back in her handmade wooden chairs, watching Sebastian and Tara devour pumpkin soup while laughing about the cheesy CGI in Medic Whom, she thought back on how she'd only seen Sebastian this happy as a young child.

Now, hopelessly in love, he looked so youthful, so full of life. She cherished that Sebby, and hoped that maybe, in the future, Tara or Sebby would ask a certain question that would allow her to welcome even more of that cheerful youthfulness into her life. Preferably in the form of grandchildren.

"And the gross flesh monster! Yoba, I've seen Halloween decorations that were scarier than that," Sebastian was saying.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh all you want, but it was the concept of what defines humanity and what we value as a life that made the episode memorable," Tara retorted, pointing her spoon at him.

"You're such a dork," Sebastian laughed into his pumpkin soup.

"A smelly dork," Tara scoffed, looking down at her muddy overalls. "Pity my shower's being reinstalled. Roaches keep crawling through the pipes and getting in my tub, so I'm just getting a whole new one."

"There's a bathhouse just up the hill by the train tracks," Robin offered. "Sebby knows where it is, he can take you there."

"It's kind of like a sauna," Sebastian said thoughtfully. "Like the Ugar's bathing pools in episode 17 of season 2 in Cave Saga."

"Ooh, if I get to bathe in a pretty cave hot spring surrounded by geodes then I'm in. I just need my bathing suit and we're good to go!"

Tara stood, placing her and Sebastian's dishes in the sink before the pair of them headed off to Tara's farmhouse, Robin smiling fondly at their retreating backs.

Swimsuit in tow, Tara followed Sebastian as he led her up past the farmhouse to a picturesque building with a cool-looking fountain in front. Tara gave a friendly wave to Linus as he walked back to his tent, and Sebastian smiled, guiding her into the front door.

"Wait, are you coming with?" Tara asked, a slight blush on her face.

"I mean, if you ever wanted to go swimming, I guess I'd do it," Sebastian grinned sheepishly, holding up a pair of black swim trunks.

"Besides," he murmured, sidling up to her, "no one ever comes to this place. Penny does sometimes, but besides that, the only two people I know of who come here are you and me."

Tara gave a tiny whimper as Sebastian gently pressed her to the wall, nibbling his way up her neck until he tugged on her earlobe with his teeth.

"Ah! Seb...as lovely as this is, I think we should-mm!-take this to the pool itself," Tara gasped.

"Great idea, babe," Sebastian purred, tilting her chin up to gaze at her heatedly. "That means we'll both be wearing less."

Tara slipped into the women's locker room, flashing Sebastian a quick smile before leaning against the door, panting. Yoba, he was coming on strong today. And Tara loved every single minute of it. She hadn't felt this excited since...well, ever.

She could hardly wait to see the look on his face.

Removing her clothes, she examined herself in the mirror. She'd shaved everything the night before, her only reason in doing so being that she hadn't shaved in a few weeks. Farming prioritized practicality over personal beauty, but today, she was pretty lucky.

Tara already knew Sebastian wouldn't mind her stretch marks. Every blemish on her was beautiful to him. Besides, in her outfit, he'd be focused completely on something else.

Slipping on her black bikini, Tara struck a coquettish pose in the mirror, grinning. She looked _damn_ passable. The top half pushed up her already well-endowed breasts to a noticeable fullness, and the bottom accentuated her hips and rear quite nicely.

Channeling all her inner panache, she stepped out into the common bathing area, where Sebastian was already waiting. He looked very nice as well, with his pale, lightly muscled chest moving down to protruding hips that disappeared into his trunks. Tara noted with a swallow that he even had the coveted V shape going on with his pelvis. Sebastian whistled, looking her up and down.

"Yoba, Tara, you look fantastic," he hummed approvingly as Tara waded into the steamy water.

"I _feel_ fantastic," Tara said, groaning pleasurably as she sank into the warm water. "This feels so nice. My muscles are already loosening up."

"I wouldn't mind loosening up some other things," Sebastian crooned, his voice unbearably husky as he swam over to Tara.

"Yeah?" She squeaked as she felt his hands slide eagerly to her ass before running up her sides.

"Yeah," he growled, before looking her in the eye. "Can I touch you?"

" _Please,"_ she gasped, and let out a moan of pleasure as Sebastian pushed the bikini top up and out of the way, kneading her breasts with a smirk.

"Haven't been touched like this in a while, huh, sweetheart?" he murmured, and Tara shook her head. He chuckled, pulling her onto his lap to suckle her stiffened pink nipples, relishing in the quiet keening from his girlfriend that echoed around the room.

Tara gave a quiet moan as she felt Sebastian hardening beneath her. Whimpering, she rubbed herself against him, the pleasurable friction making her crave the heat of him inside her.

Sebastian's eyes met hers, and with a teasing wink, he slipped one hand down her thighs to move aside the bikini, exposing Tara's puffy pink lips to the water. She wordlessly spread her legs, watching with bated breath as he lazily drew out his cock from his swim trunks, stroking himself slowly. "You want me inside you, Tara?" he asked softly.

Tara nodded eagerly, straddling him. "Yeah, please, I want to feel your..." She trailed off, eyes widening. "Cock. Oh shit."

"What? What is it? Do we need protection?" Sebastian sat up, looking alarmed as Tara quickly adjusted her swimsuit to appear decent.

"My chickens," she wailed. "I haven't fed them today."

She looked so forlorn that Sebastian couldn't help but laugh. "Cockblocked by literal cocks, huh? Yoba, we have the worst luck."

Tara grumbled. "If this happens next time we try to fuck, I'll be _pissed._ The door could be locked and you'd be halfway in me and then, the next thing I know, my cows are going to be lowing because they're giving birth. Damn it, I wanted this so bad."

"You know I'd take you any time, sweetheart," Sebastian whispered into her ear. "Now go feed your chickens." He grinned, giving her a sharp slap on the ass. Tara squeaked, sticking her tongue out at him before hurrying out to the women's locker room.

Sebastian sighed. Honestly, they _did_ have the worst luck when it came to intimate encounters. First a witch, now farm animals...he hoped nothing would intrude on their next attempt.

Stalking to the men's locker room, he undressed and turned the shower on to a pleasant warmth, grasping his stubborn erection with a needy groan.

_How would this have ended, Sebastian? How did you want this to go?_

The doors would be locked; in some magical scenario, no one would think of entering or even be able to enter. It would just be him and Tara, alone in the bathing pool, with nothing to stifle the rising flames of passion between them.

He imagined slowly untying the straps of her top, sliding the black cloth down her hips until she was completely bare before him, utterly wanton in her desire. He'd take off his trunks, clasping her naked body to him as their lips clashed, feeling his member hard against her stomach. She'd bite her lip, rubbing against him again, and he'd tease her with his tip before lining himself up and lowering her onto him with a rich groan. She'd be on top of him, riding him so that the water churned, making ravishing little gasps of pleasure that would make his cock pulse.

He groaned under the spray, fucking his fist greedily as he pictured Tara's face, flushed in pleasure, lips parted as she sank down onto him until he was balls-deep. With a stifled cry, he spurted thick white ropes of come onto the tiles of the shower floor, imagining Tara screaming his name as he filled her up with come.

Gasping in post-orgasmic bliss, he turned off the shower and lazily dressed, heading back home. Once in his room, he flopped down onto his couch, pulling out his phone to text Tara.

Seb: How are your chickens?

Beauty: They hate me now only because I forgot to feed them once. Cthulhu attacked my ankles. :/

Sebastian snorted as he continued to text his girlfriend. She really was something.

They had no idea what awaited them the next day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *leans back in writer's beanbag* and so the sin begins.


	20. Meet the witch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara's mother returns to take back what is hers, but not if Sebastian has anything to say about it!

BAM! BAM! BAM!

"TARA LYDIA WATERS, YOU SHOW YOURSELF THIS INSTANT!"

Tara sat bolt upright in bed, gasping, before leaning against her pillows. "How many of these stupid nightmares am I going to have-"

BAM! BAM! BAM!

"DO YOU WANT ME TO BREAK DOWN THIS DOOR?!"

Tara felt a cold, nauseous chill run down her entire body.

_She's here._

Tara nabs her phone, huddling under the window as she texts Sebastian.

Tara: Sebby, I need your help _now._

Sebby: Ok...are you sure you did all the chores this time, babe? >:3

Tara: SEB MY MOM IS HERE

Tara lets out a surprised gasp as she hears something ram against her house door, followed by the enraged voice of Mayor Lewis. She tiptoes up to her window and peers out.

Her cunt of a mom is standing there, in her fake fur vest and pearls, her snippy voice shrill and piercing as she engages in a verbal battle with the mayor.

"What on EARTH do you think you're doing to the farmhouse?! Please leave the premises or I will have you escorted off the premises!"

"Is that so? Well, this farm happens to belong to my daughter, and I am looking for her. You _lied_ to me, Lewis. Where is she?"

Tara growls as she hears a sickening thump and Mayor Lewis' pained groan. One of her two henchmen must have hit him.

"She's most likely inside, Helen. You don't have to resort to violence."

"I do what I please. Joja Corporation could have this entire community bulldozed within a week, and I just so happen to be acquainted with the regional manager. Now, you will let me in her house, or I will call in the removal team to ensure this town is buried. Are we clear, Lewis?"

Lewis gives a defeated sigh, and Tara curses under her breath. Mayor Lewis may be chivalrous and kind, but his one flaw is the town itself, and her mother knows it well.

Quickly, Tara opens up the window on the farthest side of her bedroom, slipping her galaxy dagger and phone in her pocket, and clambers up on the sill.

"TARA! WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN THERE? I CAN SEE YOU, YOU LITTLE RAT!"

Tara hisses as she hits the ground, running over barren turf towards the clearing that leads to Cindersap Forest. As she hears the brutal thumps of her mother's hired men running full throttle towards her, she prays to Yoba that Sebastian sensed something was wrong.

*************

Sebastian curses, flinging his phone on the floor and running his hands through his hair. Tara hasn't responded to any of his worried texts after she's told him of the problem concerning her mother.

That can only mean one thing, and he's not going to let it happen.

He races to Tara's farm, his fist closed around the small iron dirk his mother gave him, and stops at the bus stop.

Tara's hands are bound in zip ties as she struggles furiously against the grip of two muscled men. A shrew-faced woman in a fur vest and pearls who Sebastian assumes is her mother grabs her ear and whispers something into it. Tara attempts to headbutt the lady as she is carried against her will towards the bus. Sebastian does the only thing he can think of: yell.

"HEY, YOU BITCH! LET MY GIRLFRIEND GO!"

The sour woman swings her head towards him, snarling. She turns back to Tara, grabbing her by the chin with sharp nails.

"You've got yourself a boyfriend?! And I DIDN'T APPROVE OF HIM?! You...you little slut!"

Sebastian bristles as the woman slaps Tara across the face, and he walks up to her.

If he's going to fight this woman, he's going to fight in the way he knows best.

Words.

"Stop hurting her."

"Seb, don't," Tara pleads, but Helen has already set her eyes on this insufferable young man.

"So, you're the little prick who shagged my daughter, eh?"

"Oh, yeah," Sebastian lies, puffing himself up. "Many, many times. And you know what? She _loved it._ I leaned her over that fencepost, right where you're standing, and fucked her until she screamed my name. _"_

Stumbling away from the fence with an affronted gasp, Helen clasps her necklace. "Of all the insolent...you listen to me, young man-"

"No! You listen! All her life, Tara's been trying to get your approval and your love, and what do you give her? Slaps in the face and gaslighting. You're her _MOTHER,_ for Yoba's sake. You're supposed to accept each part of her without shame, especially when she's trying her best! You're a selfish, ignorant cunt who thinks of herself first and others later!"

"Sebastian?!"

Sebastian groans as he hears the shocked voices of Robin and Demetrius, but he shrugs them off.

"All you want is to live your dream through her, because you fucked up too badly to make your own way in the world. So you're taking your daughter's life away and making it your second one. Did you ever think about what she wanted? What she felt like when you said she wasn't doing enough?"

"You little-"

"Because SHE'S TIRED OF IT! I'm the only one who ever saw that, who even thought that the reason she came to this backwater place is to get away from something and to get some goddamn peace from some fucking hag like you! I've listened to her, I've been there for her! Hell, I admit it! I love her!"

Tara gives a little smile as Robin gasps and Demetrius just stares, slack-jawed. Helen looks as though she's eaten a whole lemon.

"You aren't fit to be in her life. You aren't even fit to be her family. My mom has been more of a mom to her than you will ever be. And I...I've loved her more than she's ever been loved."

There's a stunned silence throughout the little clearing until one of the henchmen sniffs.

"My man, that's beautiful."

"Uh, thanks, dude," Sebastian says awkwardly as the burly man deposits Tara bridal style into his arms and frees her zip-ties.

"What are you _doing?!"_ Helen squawks as the two burly men manhandle her into the bus.

"Taking you to Joja Corp. Someone's about to lose their job," the henchman grins, as he climbs into the driver's seat.

The bus drives off, Helen's shrill screeches of protest growing fainter and fainter until all is silent. Sebastian deposits Tara on the ground, where she stands quietly, rubbing her wrists.

Then she looks up at Sebastian, grinning.

"That was awfully convenient."

"I'll say," Robin chimed in. "Your public speaking class seemed to do you some good, Seb."

"Thanks, Mom," Seb sighs, before stiffening as Demetrius walks towards him with a stern expression.

"Sebastian...I...I'd like to apologize. Those words you said made me realize that I've been pressing my daughter's successes on you, trying to make you the perfect kid that you just aren't chalked up to be. I've never treated you as well as my own blood. But you make Robin happy, and that makes me happy. So...for all I've ever done, I'm sorry."

Sebastian stands solemnly for a moment before extending a hand to Demetrius.

"I accept your apology, Demetrius."

Robin cheers, squeezing the little band into a group hug. "Oh, everyone's getting along! I can make some peach cobbler from Tara's farm, and that green tea Mayor Lewis likes..."

"Oh my god, Mayor Lewis is still passed out on my farm," Tara yelps, and sprints down the path.

"Why don't you give her a hand, Sebastian?" Robin says with a mischievous grin, but Sebastian is already following her. She clasps Demetrius' hand as Sebastian catches up to her, laughing jubilantly and catching her as she trips.

"They're going to have fun," she hums happily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISNEY CLICHES? IN MY FANFIC? ITS MORE LIKELY THAN YOU THINK
> 
> hehe what can i say guys i'm itching to use my smut-writing skills


	21. Becoming one

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smut is all this is, babey. Enjoy the sin. 
> 
> I SURE DID.

"HAH! Eat my entire ass, Seb!"

Sebastian rolls his eyes endearingly as Tara raises her hands in victory. She's finally won her first game of Fantastic Giovanni Race against him, with a single red shell being the key to her takeover.

"Is that an offer?" Sebastian jokes, raising one eyebrow.

Tara plops down on her beanbag with a sigh. "Man, I wish it was. But your parents and Maru are always around, and my farm duties take up too much time for us to do it at my place."

"It'll happen sooner or later, babe," Sebastian says reassuringly, patting her thigh. They hear footsteps coming down the stairs and he quickly yanks his hand away like he's been burned.

Robin enters with Demetrius on her tail, looking snappy in a white blouse and jeans.

"Wow, Robin, you look nice," Tara says approvingly.

"Aw, you flatter me too much, honey. It's just for a date night," Robin replies with a bashful wave of her hand. "Dinner's in the fridge if you guys want any. Oh, and Maru's working a late shift, so she's going to Abby's when she's done."

Sebastian glances for a split second at Tara, whose eyes have lit up.

"Sounds good," he manages, and Robin gives him a grin before her and Demetrius head out.

"You didn't have to orchestrate an entire plot, Robin," Demetrius murmurs as he and his wife ascend the stairs.

"Are you kidding? Those two are practically starving for some alone time, Deme! Don't tell me you don't know what that's like," Robin scoffs.

"Hnn," Demetrius concedes.

***********

The moment Sebastian hears the door click shut, he's on Tara like an animal, hands sliding under her shirt to squeeze her plump breasts with fervor as he kisses her like his life depends on it. He scoops her up as she squeals in surprise, depositing her on his bed with a soft _pomf_ before crawling over her, rubbing himself against her heat.

"Yoba, Seb," Tara moans, bucking her hips against his hardening cock. "Don't you dare stop."

"I don't intend to, baby," Sebastian growls as he pulls Tara's shirt over her head, her breasts bouncing free hypnotically. Sebastian smirks at Tara, who glances away, blushing pink.

"You didn't wear a bra again, huh? It's almost like you _want_ me to notice," he purrs as he gently pinches her stiff nipples. Tara lets out a pleading mewl, shifting as Sebastian's hands firmly massage her chest while he kisses her hungrily.

"I do, a lot of the time-ah!" Tara trails off into a high-pitched moan as the rough pads of Sebastian's thumbs find her nipples again, circling them with slow, teasing strokes.

"I thought about doing this, when I saw you in Abby's robe," Sebastian confesses as he yanks off his own shirt. Tara squeaks as he pulls her onto his lap, the feeling of his firm chest against her soft breasts intoxicating as he sighs contentedly into her neck.

"If I were in that situation now, you know what I'd do?" he asks, trailing his tongue in a warm path up her neck before sucking pleasantly on Tara's sensitive nipples again.

"What?"

"I'd hike up that skirt of yours and brush my fingers ever so slowly over your clit," he breathes, and Tara moans as he begins to pull the hem of her sweatpants down. His fingers are so hot, like electric sparks flying up her spine with each brush against her thighs.

"Then, I'd sink one finger inside you, feeling you clench around me," Sebastian continues, lifting his gaze to meet hers as he swiftly slides his hand into her panties, sliding one long finger inside her with a single movement. Tara's already soaked, so it comes as a welcome surprise when he flexes the digit inside her, searching for the spongy flesh that will make her back arch in ecstasy.

Sebastian deftly thrusts his finger in and out of her rhythmically before adding a second, but ultimately the clothing is too much of a barrier.

"Hips up for me, babe," Sebastian commands, and Tara obliges as he swiftly removes both of her articles of clothing before discarding his own. Tara blushes a lovely shade of peach as she beholds his stiff erection trapped against his hips and hers, biting her lip as he slots his hips with hers just so to slide his shaft against her clit.

"And now, I want to bury myself in you, feeling your perfect, wet pussy clenching around me as I take it and make it _mine,"_ Sebastian growls. His lean body looms over Tara, caging her in, but it's the warmth and love in his eyes that let her know she's safe. She wraps her legs around his waist, heels pulling him closer, and bucks her hips upward so that he's lined up with her slick entrance.

"Seb, just fuck me," she gasps, and he obligingly slides into her welcoming heat, groaning in pleasure as his shaft stretches her out in a wonderful sensation of warm fullness. He's so hard, and warm, and utterly _real_ that the sensation of his cock inside her nearly makes Tara come.

Sebastian feels her tense around him and smirks, rubbing his thumb over her bottom lip.

"Does that feel good, kitten?"

Tara's eyes flutter close and she whimpers at the use of the pet name, and Sebastian chuckles lightly before pulling out and slamming back in.

" _FUCK,_ Seb," Tara cries as the tip of his cock kisses her womb, making her entire body light up in that maddening sensation of fiery pleasure.

Sebastian's panting as he thrusts rhythmically into Tara, hands fisting the sheets as his balls slap against her slit with each thrust. The pornographic, wet slaps of their meeting bodies and the muffled cries from Tara is all he can hear above his own labored breathing, but it isn't enough. He wants to hear more of her.

And so he pulls out, nudging Tara's knees open wider as he motions for her to flip over, and she obediently gets on all fours. This angle is deeper, and Sebastian curses as he feels his cock slip inside once more, so deep that he can feel her womb's entrance.

He pounds into her again and again with fervor, his nails digging crescent moons into her hips, and Tara's wailing with the pleasure. He smiles to himself.

"That's it, baby. Come for me."

And suddenly she's trembling, collapsing into the mattress as her elbows give way, her velvety, warm channel clenching lovingly around him. Sebastian grips the base of his cock, gritting his teeth; he wants to see her when he comes. He sits cross-legged on the bed, waiting for her to ride the crest of her climax.

When her breathing has returned to normal, she looks back at him, still hard, and he holds his arms out to her.

"C'mere, Tara, I want to see you."

Tara flushes wordlessly as he places his hands gently on her ass, lowering her body onto his as she sits on his cock, the wonderful stretch and warmth of it inside her making her moan. Sebastian suckles her breasts with a mischievous smirk before grasping her hips, thrusting up into her quickly with masculine grunts of pleasure as he chases his own climax.

Tara's grabbing handfuls of the sheets again as Sebastian pistons in and out of her, feeling him throb and swell more and more with each thrust until-

"TARA!"

"SEBASTIAN!"

Then he's filling her up, each spurt of hot fluid inside her making her tremble with how delightfully debauched it all feels, his thick seed sliding out of her as he pulls out with a sated sigh.

"Yoba, that was...great..." Sebastian gasps, before tugging Tara onto his chest lazily as they drift off into a post-coital dreamless slumber.

And if Robin notices the state of his sheets later as she does his laundry, she simply says nothing, only smiling to herself as she hears Sebastian's beautiful laugh from the kitchen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HNG i simp for this lad so hard y'all don't even know


	22. Primal claims

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> MORE SMUT. This time, it’s in the shower, though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hnnng i SIMP for this hot emo man

Sebastian awakens with a groan. He's sweaty, and the scratchy cotton of his mattress is making his skin prickle uncomfortably. Why is he naked? And why does his bed feel so...small?

He pushes lightly against the intruding obstacle, only to be surprised when his hand meets warm, smooth skin.

So he slept with someone.

He sits up, looking at the woman in his bed in a panic, only to relax when he saw the bright blue locks spread across his pillow.

Of course. Who else?

He smiles, leaning back into his pillow as he gazes at the lovely farmer slumbering peacefully next to him. If you had asked him, a year or two ago, if he would have gotten laid with a chick like her, he'd have laughed in your face.

And yet, there she was, in all of her nude glory, pink and soft and utterly enticing. Sebastian gave a hum of approval in the back of his throat, trailing his fingers up her chest.

The feather-light touch of his hands on her breasts is enough to wake Tara, and she blinks up at him before smiling.

"Hey, you," she mumbles, brushing her blue hair out of her eyes.

"Hey," Sebastian replies, before leaning over and kissing her deeply.

Tara moans as he brushes his fingers over her folds, his violet eyes staring at her with such lustful intensity that it makes her melt. But she's sweaty and gross, and sex with Sebastian wouldn't make her feel as good as a nice hot shower.

"Babe, I'm all gross," she whines. "I need to go rinse off."

Sebastian's heated gaze doesn't waver as he drinks in her body while she rises to go to the bathroom.

"Mind if I join you?"

Now there was an idea.

Tara bit her lip as Sebastian crossed the room in three quick strides, closing the door with a soft click and pinning her against the wall. His cock is hot and hard against her thighs, and she whimpers as he slides it teasingly between her legs.

"I want to bury myself in you, Tara," Sebastian croons, giving his girlfriend a love bite on her collarbone. "I want to make you moan even louder than last night."

"What's stopping you?" Tara gasps. The dark-haired boy smirks at her, running his hands up her sides.

"Gotta wash you first, baby," he purrs. "What's the point in covering you in come if I have to wash it off?"

Tara mewls. Sebastian has already figured out all her turn-ons: the dirty talk, the smirks, the neck bites, and, oh, the teasing.

He's insatiable, and that only makes her even more aroused for him.

"Although," Sebastian continues as he steps into the shower with her, "you seemed to prefer my come dripping out of you. Little kitten likes being bred like a whore, doesn't she?"

Tara groans, shifting slightly as she feels the blood pooling in her groin. "Seb, please," she pleads. "I want to be able to last a little bit."

"Okay, okay," Sebastian laughs as she turns on the warm spray. "Wait, you were on the pill last night, weren't you?"

"Got an implant from the doc before I moved here," Tara says reassuringly, tapping her arm. "We're good."

"Ah. In that case..."

Tara yelps in surprise as he hitches one leg up on the corner of the tub, sliding inside her with one quick motion. She moans as she feels his hands, soft with soap, kneading at her tits like they were a fine dough. Sebastian is panting as he thrusts inside her, the feeling of her clenching around him utterly intoxicating.

"Feel good?" He murmurs in Tara's ear before nipping at her neck. "You like this cock in you, baby?"

Tara can only nod. Sebastian's surprisingly limber for someone who doesn't appear to get out much. His hips are grinding against hers with fluid grace, his cock pistoning in and out of her so fast that it feels almost like a vibrator. She's loving every minute of his salacious words, coupled with the warm body against and inside her, Sebastian's touch clouding her mind with pleasure.

All of a sudden, she feels the wave of pleasure racing up to meet her, and she tries desperately to keep her legs from trembling as Sebastian thrusts deliciously inside her, his nails raking over her body hungrily as he chases his own release. He rubs her clit with one finger, smiling slightly.

“You’re gonna come, aren’t you? You wanna tighten around this dick as I fill you up?”

His words alone are too much for Tara, and her back arches in a graceful arc as she cries out, her nerves resetting in electric bliss as her cunt clenches eagerly around Sebastian’s cock.

Sebastian lets out a groan of pleasure as his own orgasm overtakes him, grasping Tara’s hips blindly as he pumps his load inside her. The climax seems to last forever, and when he’s finished, he feels a twinge of pride at both Tara’s sated expression and the amount of semen leaking from her pussy. He turns off the lukewarm water with a sigh, toweling both him and Tara off before padding over lazily to his bed and crawling under the toasty warm covers.

“Yoba, you’re better at dirty talking than any of my past partners,” Tara hums. “How’d you know it was my thing?”

“It’s hard not to notice when you’re clamping around my dick like a vice,” Sebastian snorts. “A good vice, by the way, in case you were wondering.”

“So you’ve figured out ALL my kinks, then?”

“I know you’ve got one for breeding,” Sebastian purrs, kissing her just below the ear as Tara whimpers. “You tighten ever so nicely whenever I say something about filling you up.”

Tara flushes a brilliant shade of pink. “It’s just...claiming me physically has always felt kind of sexy, yknow? Like I do all this farm work and fighting, and being dominated like that makes me feel like I’m taking some femininity back.”

“Huh. Never thought about it like that,” Sebastian hums before wrapping his arms around her. “Don’t feel like you ever have to prove your girliness, Tara. Or anything, for that matter. I love you just as you are.”

“I love you too, Sebby.”

Sebastian just grins down at her, cuddling with Tara contentedly until they both drift into a peaceful, post-coital slumber.


	23. Slimed!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara raises slimes, and Seb informs Tara of his new gig as a programmer. While they're lovemaking, of course.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh god oh fuck i can't stop simping and self-inserting
> 
> what can i say, i love me some bad boys who don't want to fall prey to the cogwheels of the corporate death machine

Sebastian knocks on Tara's doorstep, bouncing on the balls of his feet excitedly. He can't wait to tell her about his new programming job, one that allows him to work from home instead of at an IT office.

He frowns, knocking again. Usually she's so punctual about answering the door. Something white flutters down from the porch table, and he catches it. It's a piece of paper with Tara's signature messy scrawl.

_Seb: I'm in the purple fortress to the west of my chicken coop. Ya girl's raising slimes!_

Sebastian looks in the direction of the note's contents, and his jaw drops. There was indeed a large stone building of a foreboding purple color in the distance across the grassy landscape. He wondered why he hadn't seen it, but then chalked it up to his excitement about telling Tara of his new job.

With a small sigh of disappointment at having to trek some more to give his girlfriend a greeting kiss, he set off through the ryegrass towards the slime hutch. As he got closer, he could hear strange little yowls from within, not unlike the burbling shrieks of wild slimes. These screeching noises, however, sounded more playful than threatening. As he neared the hutch door, he could hear Tara giggling from within.

"Get the FUCK out of my shirt, Indigo! You're supposed to make babies with Poppy, not me!"

Sebastian snorted with amusement as he donned his slime ring, opening the hutch door. He was almost immediately greeted by a blob of green slime, growling protectively at him. Tara, meanwhile, was sitting on the floor, trying to detach a cuddly blue slime with a bobbing antenna from inside her tank top. It cooed mischievously and burrowed deeper into Tara's cleavage as Tara yelped at the feeling of cold, sticky slime on her skin. Sebastian smirked at her.

"Need help?"

" _Yeah, maybe,"_ Tara groaned sarcastically, holding out her hands. They were covered in blue slime, dripping messily from her fingers like some fantastical dog drool.

Sebastian laughed, scooping up a cupful of water from the water trough. Tara's eyes narrowed.

"What're you- _HOLYSHITTHAT'SCOLD!"_

Sebastian wheezed with laughter as he unceremoniously dumped the cup of water all over Tara's lap, causing Indigo to trill excitedly at the sight of water and immediately move from her chest to her lap.

"Know your place, you little turd," Sebastian said mockingly, poking Indigo with a finger. "Nobody but me gets to grab those."

"Possessive, aren't we," Tara laughs, scooping Indigo up and depositing him on the ground.

"How the hell did you end up with a slime in your shirt? That's what I want to know," Sebastian retorted, grinning.

"I was just going to put some slime in the egg press. He probably saw all the sweat trickling in there and thought it was a great idea to get cozy."

"I mean, he's not wrong. Boobs are boobs," Sebastian shrugged.

"Slimes don't even HAVE boobs!"

"Maybe not. They do mate like rodents, though."

Tara looked over at her two slimes with a small grimace. "Not these two. The first time Indigo tried to mate with Poppy, she ran halfway across the hutch. Slimes just fuck and run, man, they don't care. They especially don't care where they hang out unless it's my sweaty rack or somewhere else humid."

"I think that sweaty rack of yours needs a rinse-off," Sebastian smirked, running his finger along a trail of blue, slippery mucus on Tara's collarbone. She shuddered.

"That's a great idea."

**********

Moments later, they're fucking like rabbits in the shower again, Sebastian's virile stamina proving to be too much for Tara as she collapsed, knees shaking, onto the floor of the tub after her first orgasm.

Pleasure-ridden and cleaned of blue slime, Tara giggled as she led Sebastian to her bed, his warm body covering hers.

"Got all your farm chores in?"

"Relax, Seb, I've got iridium sprinklers and auto-feeders. Not to mention the fact that I'm on the pill now. No need to worry."

"So what you're saying is 'hurry up and stick it in.' I got you."

Tara laughs, smushing her palm against his stubbly cheek as he blows a raspberry onto her neck. His eyes are shining with mirth and love. She's honestly never seen him this happy.

"What's got you so excited?"

"Physically? I'm a big fan of your tits," Sebastian purrs, cupping her breasts in his palms.

Tara blushes. "No, like, you've got this...glow about you. I know when you've had a good day. Today seems like it was a great day."

Sebastian hums distractedly, kneading her breasts with singleminded focus. "I did get a working from home job."

Tara cups his face excitedly. "Really?! That means you could finally move in!"

Sebastian's eyebrow quirks upward, and he smirks. "Babe, you and I would get nothing done if we were under the same roof." He pulls her into his lap, rubbing his hardness against her eagerly. "We both know I'd fuck you on any surface I could throw you over," he murmurs into her ear as he slides in. The combination of his filthy words and the pleasurable warmth and stretch of him inside her makes Tara whimper.

"Yeah...it'd be-ah!...quite s-something," Tara manages as he begins a rhythmic pace in and out of her, fingers running lightly down her spine to produce sparks of mind-numbing ecstasy.

"I'm not saying I'd be opposed to it," Sebastian croons, nipping at the sweet spot just below Tara's ear while flicking a raised nipple simultaneously. "I'd finally get to work on that indie game I've been thinking about."

"Sebastian, you're so full of surprises," Tara gasps in between thrusts.

"And you're full of me," Sebastian says with a saucy wink.

Tara grimaces at the poor innuendo, but the flutter of her walls around Sebastian's length informs him that she did indeed enjoy the risqué pun.

"Go on and come for me, baby. I'm close too, gonna fill you up," Sebastian grunts as Tara throws back her head with a soft moan, clenching around him eagerly as he erupts inside her. Tara lets out a hum of contentment, feeling the warm fluid drip slowly out of her as Sebastian's softening member slides out. She cuddles close to him,pulling the sheets over their naked bodies as he collapses onto the pillows, breathing heavily.

"Honestly, I think Mom would like it if I moved into your place," he says after a few moments. "She's been pestering me to get a mermaid pendant."

Tara closes her eyes, a warm feeling blooming in her chest at the thought of marrying Sebastian. Walking down the grassy aisle in a white dress, seeing him in his impeccable tux, dancing with him, cutting the cake...

It sounds wonderful.

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," is all she says before she drifts off.

That night, she dreams of white lacy veils and Sebastian's violet eyes.


	24. Think about it

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara's got a nagging feeling that things aren't going to stay fairytale happy for long. The roiling emotions lead her and Seb to discuss a situation that will change their lives forever. But when is Seb going to stop beating around the bush and do the deed?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me: *taps mic* so...I'm drawin it out for plot
> 
> *audience boos*
> 
> me: OY HE'S GONNA MARRY HER EVENTUALLY. GOD.

Tara hacks her way through a myriad of purple bushes with ease, marveling at the power and speed of her fine galaxy sword.

Of course, she had gotten it a while ago. After paying off an exorbitant amount of gold to the Junimos, Tara immediately hopped on the bus in search of adventure. What she found in the desert had satisfied her need for action immensely: a door leading to a labyrinth of massive proportions called the Skull Caverns. Nobody had reached the bottom due to the sheer size of the place, coupled with the venomous Quetzalcoatl, fire-breathing Pepper Rexes, and swift Iridium Bats. But once Tara had carried a prismatic shard and placed it between the three desert pillars to receive the legendary galaxy sword, she'd become a mining machine.

Sebastian seemed pretty happy with Tara's massive successes in the Skull Caverns, commenting on how proud he was that she could cart in nearly thirty thousand gold every day.

"With this income, my indie game could be a reality within a matter of months," he'd said over dinner with Robin, and Tara had blushed modestly at his praise.

Things were utterly perfect.

Too perfect.

Tara thought back to the last time she had seen her mother being carted away by her own henchmen. She'd lost her job for sure, as her mother had resorted to writing letters to Tara's home detailing her need for money and how she was a disgrace to the family name by 'fornicating with a deranged Satanist.'

Tara had promptly burned the letters and gone off to fornicate with her so-called 'deranged Satanist' until the wee hours of the morning.

Still, even with the joy of Sebastian living in her home and Robin providing the utmost support, Tara felt a nagging feeling that her mother wasn't through with her. These feelings turned to anger, and in order to prevent herself from snapping at her boyfriend, she went to the Mines. Taking out her aggression on shadow brutes and fire bats was almost freeing. Even Sebastian seemed to enjoy coming with her every now and then.

Tara suspected he had different reasons, however.

"Take that, you incorporeal taint," Tara growled at the shadow brute as she sliced it neatly in half. Picking up the strange bun and void essence it had dropped, she turned to Sebastian, who was grinning at her with a wolfish gleam in his eye.

"Yoba, you're hot when you're badass," he sighed, leaning on his lava katana.

"It's a living," Tara hummed, swiftly dispatching a shadow shaman in two quick swipes.

"Literally," Sebastian laughed. "If it weren't for your swordsmanship, I bet you wouldn't be half as rich as you are now."

"Mother forced me to do fencing when I was nine," Tara said softly, before slamming her pickaxe onto a node of emeralds. "I guess I channeled that skill into another act of defiance against her."

"You're worried she'll come back, aren't you?"

Tara nodded wordlessly.

"She's never one to back down from a fight. I blocked her, burn her letters, ignore everything she tries to throw at me, but I know she's plotting. She's a snake waiting to strike."

Sebastian wrapped an arm around his girlfriend comfortingly. "Next floor is floor one hundred. You wanna sit there and talk it out?"

Tara smiled. "Yeah. Yeah, I do."

The pair of them clambered down the ladder before sitting amiably on the red clay a good distance away from the boiling lava.

"She's not gone, Seb. Not for good. I know the woman who nearly ruined my life."

Sebastian took her hand, sighing mournfully as his girlfriend curled in on herself. There were times when even his empathy wouldn't make her feel better. All he could do was listen and hope that Tara's admittance of her feelings would lead to healing.

"I want to let her go so damn much," Tara whispered. "But she's always in my head. I feel...like I should help her. I'm her daughter. I don't...I don't understand why..."

"She doesn't deserve shit from you, Tara. Family isn't always about who you're related to."

Tara leaned into Sebastian, exhaling slowly. "Yeah. You're my family now. You, Robin, Abs, and Sam. Everybody. This town is a big family."

"I'm going to be the weird uncle no one talks to at family reunions. Because people assume I'm scary and will shiv you up your asshole."

Tara laughed, and Sebastian smiled. "There's my girl."

"Shut _up,"_ Tara giggled. "You won't be the weird lonely uncle."

"And why is that? Because I'll be married to you?"

Tara promptly squeaked and buried her lobster-red face in Sebastian's neck. Sebastian patted her back awkwardly.

"Sorry. We should probably discuss that more..."

"No. No, I...I like the idea of it. Marrying you."

Sebastian felt his heart stop and restart in the long pause after Tara had finished speaking.

"I like it too," he mumbled. "Y'know, I can't see myself as anything other than a computer programmer, but there's one constant I'd also want to be."

"My husband?"

Sebastian flushed. "Yeah."

Tara smiled. "I wouldn't mind it. But if you're...um...unsure, just give it some time, okay? I don't want us to rush into something."

Sebastian gave his girlfriend a squeeze. "You're so awesome, you know that?"

Tara beamed at him. "Oh, I know I am."


	25. No going back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian gets his hands on the one thing needed to reign in the love of his life: a Mermaid's Pendant.

Robin glances down the stairs at Sebastian's room again. She's been hearing him pacing for hours, sitting down on the couch only to get back again.

And all the while, he's been muttering to himself. Something about 'this is what I want, but I really don't want to lose her.'

Oh, Yoba, he was planning a breakup.

Sighing resolutely, Robin descended the stairs and opened the door gingerly.

"Sebby? Everything okay?"

Sebastian sat up from his slumped position on the couch.

"Wha? Oh, yeah, just...uh...thinking."

"It's about Tara," he continued, as Robin sat down beside him. "I want to make a big decision in our relationship, but I don't know if I'm rushing into it because I think it's right."

"Well, did anything happen that might have led to you wanting to do this?"

Sebastian sighed. "Everything. Every little thing about her just makes me want this more and more."

Robin felt a pang of dread in her heart. "I thought you two were getting along fine, Seb," she began, but she didn't even finish her sentence. Sebastian sat up, looking bewildered for a moment, then laughed.

"Mom, we're definitely not breaking up. I'm...I'm debating whether I should ask her to marry me."

It seemed as though all time had stopped. Robin looked at Sebastian, enthralled by the shy grin on his face until she screamed and pulled him into a bone-crushing hug.

"Oh, Sebby! Of _course_ she'll say yes! I've been dreaming of this day for so long, and to think...my son wants to start a family..." She trailed off, sniffling emotionally into her son's hoodie.

Sebastian grimaced. "Mom, _please_ don't get snot on me. This hoodie's my favorite."

Robin gave Sebastian a watery smile. "I'm sorry. It's just...for a long time, I thought you'd be living down here your whole life, like Shane and Marnie. But look at you. You've got a successful job, you've moved out, and now...now you're thinking of being a husband. It's so much better than the life I imagined you'd have."

Sebastian smiled, hugging his mom emotionally. "Are you sure she's gonna say yes?"

"Sebastian. You're smart enough to figure this out. Have you two talked about this?"

Sebastian flushed. "Yeah. She said she wouldn't mind. I guess I'm just second-guessing whether or not this is really real."

Robin squealed.

"Oh, it's going to be perfect! We're going to have a devil's food cake, and midnight blue napkins, and Emily can design the dress..."

"Mom! I haven't even proposed yet," Sebastian laughed. "I...I don't even know where to get a mermaid's pendant."

Robin rolled her eyes. "Oh, it's not even that expensive. You just go to the Old Mariner when it's raining on the tide pools by the East Pier. Give him five thousand gold and then he gives you the pendant."

"That's...a weird way to get a marriage token. Normally, don't people go to the jeweler's?"

"This is Stardew Valley," Robin chortled. "Nothing here is normal."

************

Sebastian had to wait for a long week before Yoba decided to bestow rain upon the valley. He could see the spirit of the Old Mariner on the edge of the tide pools, shimmering between the scrubby bushes.

If he squinted, he could just make out the vibrant blue whorl of the mermaid's pendant that he so desperately wanted.

Swallowing nervously, he crossed the slippery wooden plank, the gold in his pockets not weighing him down nearly as much as the lump in his throat. This was it. This was really happening.

No turning back now.

"'Ello, lad. Are ye looking to purchase me old amulet?"

"Yes," Sebastian mumbled, pulling out the bag of coins. With a ripple of light, the bag shimmered into a pillar of gold lights that coalesced into the Old Mariner's spirit. Smiling warmly, the Old Mariner held out his clasped hands and opened them, dropping the Mermaid's Pendant into Sebastian's trembling hands.

"Don't be shy, now. Go and show that amulet to the one you intend to marry."

"I want to. But I don't know how to start," Sebastian murmured desperately, looking into the Mariner's briny grey eyes.

"Follow yer heart, lad. If yer partner loves ye, they'll love however you present this to 'em."

Sebastian looked out to the sea, thinking, before turning back to the Old Mariner. He clutched the mermaid pendant to his chest excitedly.

"I know what I'm gonna do."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EEEEEEE PROPOSALS AND WEDDINGS COMIN
> 
> I CAN'T WAIT, CAN YOU?!


	26. Pool of life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SEB PROPOSES. HOLY SHIT. 
> 
> *buries canon gameplay of giving your spouse the marriage token and plops in romantic fanon proposal* There. I fixed it.

Sebastian had to admit, he looked _hot._ He was wearing a dark blue flannel over a gray t-shirt, with his black bracelets accentuating his slender wrists quite nicely. The rest of his outfit consisted of black jeans and red high-tops. He smirked. Tara was always joking about how little color he had in his wardrobe.

She was about to get the surprise of her life.

"Hey Seb...whoa. Yoba, you look nice," Tara stammered. Sebastian beamed, striking a faux model pose against the wall of the Stardrop.

"Try not to rip this off just yet, sweetheart," he drawled, causing Tara to blush a brilliant shade of scarlet. "We've got a date somewhere special."

Tara winced, looking down at her baggy skull t-shirt and galaxy leggings. "Man, if I'd known we were going on a date, I'd have picked something nicer."

"You're beautiful no matter what," Sebastian smiled, taking Tara's hand and kissing it. "C'mon, the slimes are going to be swarming the place really soon."

Tara resisted his excited pull ever so slightly. "Slimes? Are you sure it's safe?"

Sebastian squeezed his girlfriend's hand reassuringly. "We both have our slime charmer rings. You know I'd never go through with something if you're not comfortable with it, right?"

Tara nodded. "Yeah. Why the hell not, let's go!"

Sebastian yanked her along with that titillating smirk of his, reveling in the lighthearted giggle she let out before taking his hand.

Very soon, he hoped, he'd get to see that grin for the rest of his life.

Tara's eyebrows furrowed as they trekked through Cindersap Forest.

"Seb...I think I know where we're going. Why...why there?"

Sebastian clasped both of her hands in his, thumbs rubbing over the ugly white scars there.

"I'm not saying that what you tried to do in the Secret Forest wasn't serious. Or that the experiences that caused it aren't really damaging. But I thought maybe we could make newer, better memories there. 'Cause, y'know, that's what you did with me. Made better memories for me."

Tara buried her face into his shoulder. "Yoba, how are you so _perfect_?"

"Ask my mom," Sebastian snorted as he led her down the mossy path to the lush forest clearing. Tara gasped.

For the first time in a while, the place was free of slimes. A red and white checked blanket lay neatly by the calm, glassy pond, bedecked with a spread of sandwiches, cookies, and fresh fruits. Tara smiled with pride as she recognized some of the produce as her own. The rest appeared to have been foraged.

"Do you...do you like it?"

Sebastian rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, smiling shyly. He gave a surprised yelp as Tara threw her arms around him, squealing.

"It's _perfect!"_

They sat and ate in companionable silence for a few moments, looking at each other with rosy cheeks and butterflies in their stomachs.

Sebastian pulled Tara to lie back on the picnic blanket with him, stroking her hair lightly as he hummed the song from his concert. Tara let out a little laugh.

"Should have brought a ukelele," she snickered. Sebastian grinned at the memory of their conversation.

"So shallow, Tara. I bet you only love me for my voice," he said with mock irritation.

Tara pretended to swoon. "Oh, Teakwood-senpai, fuck me behind the curtains until I'm paralyzed from the waist down."

Sebastian broke out into uncontrollable laughter at Tara's words. Tara smiled sunnily at him until he caught his breath.

"Hoo boy. That's...that's honestly how all my girl fans were. They just saw me as a pretty face and voice they could have a one-night stand with. I noticed none of them gave you a second glance. So, why not pretend the keyboard artists are having a steamy relationship offstage by mixing it into the choreography?"

"Mmm, that choreography was everything," Tara reminisced with a dreamy grin. Sebastian swatted her lightly.

"Stop that, you. Um...what was I going to say...oh! I bet you're wondering why we're here."

Tara's eyes flicked over to the pool, and Sebastian gently rolled her off of him, standing in front of the pool. He gestured for her to stand in front of him.

"Um. Ha, this is so scary," he stammered. "Tara, when I saw you trying to end your life at this very pool, that's when I knew I loved you. Oh, what the hell. I loved you when I first saw you. But that moment was when I knew I wanted to keep you safe, to hold you close and tell you your life was worth something. Because when you barged into my heart, my life felt like it had meaning. So...I want to put that into words. H-how...how it felt when you made my life complete."

With fumbling hands, he pulled out the Mermaid's Pendant, the lump in his throat nearly as heavy as the gravity pulling him down on one knee.

"Tara Waters...will you marry me?"

Tara's hands fluttered to her lips, her eyes brimming over with unshed tears. Suddenly, she knelt before him, grasping his cheeks with one-minded focus and pulling him into a kiss.

Sebastian felt her tears running down his cheeks when they broke apart. Or maybe those tears were his own.

"Yes, Seb! Of course I will, yes!"

Sebastian let out a breathy laugh of joy as he draped the pendant over Tara's neck. Overcome with emotion, he pulled her into his arms.

"We're gonna get married. Holy fuck, you're gonna be my _wife."_

Tara just sniffled with overwhelming happiness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i lowkey felt scared writing this chapter because of the controversial topic of suicide. If it's glossed over too quickly or seems like it's written from an outside perspective, you have my deepest apologies. But hey, I've been there. It's heavy, and it's hard, but it gets so much better. 
> 
> You matter. All of you do.
> 
> Hope you enjoy the rest, my guys, gals, and nonbinary pals!


	27. Wedding bells

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian and Tara tie the knot. Not even a surprise appearance from Tara's evil mother can ruin this lovely celebration!

Tara shivers in excitement as Emily adjusts the light veil of tulle on her bright blue hair, giving her a thumbs up. Today was the day. She was finally going to be Sebastian's bride.

She could hardly wait.

Tara felt her heart flutter in nervous glee as she heard the first strains of Pachelbel's Canon float on the wind from Leah's violin. She gathered up her bouquet of blue jazz and spangles, bouncing excitedly on the balls of her feet as Emily gestured for her to exit the white bridal outdoors tent.

It was time.

As she looked up, Tara was overwhelmed with joy at the little town's congregation, all looking at her with joy. Tara didn't look at any of them. She only had eyes for Sebastian, in his sleek black tux and white silk gloves. He looked overjoyed to see her, eyes sparkling with awe at the fact that this vision walking down the aisle was going to be his.

As she reached her husband-to-be, Sebastian gently lifted her veil, grinning with delight as Mayor Lewis took the officiant's podium.

"When Tara first arrived in Pelican Town, no one knew if she'd fit in with our community. But from this day forward, Tara is going to be as much a part of this town as any of us! It is my honor on this day 16 of fall, to unite Tara and Sebastian in the bonds of marriage."

Sebastian smiled shyly as Vincent hopped forward with the Mermaid Pendants nestled on a pillow. He took one of the necklaces, and Tara noticed that his hands were trembling.

"With this pendant, I take you, Tara, to be my lawfully wedded wife," he said clearly as he draped the necklace over Tara's head.

"With this pendant, I take you, Sebastian, to be my lawfully wedded husband," Tara murmured, and draped the necklace over his neck. Mayor Lewis beamed.

"With the power vested in me as the regional bearer of the matrimonial seal, I now pronounce you-"

"I OBJECT!"

The entire town gasped, turning as one as Helen Waters stomped out of the brush, huffing like an angry bull.

"Oh, for fuck's sake," Tara growled. Hiking up her dress to her calves, she flounced towards her mother. The crowd was completely silent. Tara was the utter picture of rage at this moment, and Sebastian looked both proud and excited to see what was about to unfold.

"TARA! YOU DIDN'T TELL ME IT WAS YOUR SPECIAL DAY! WHAT KIND OF DAUGHTER DOESN'T INVITE-"

"For Yoba's sake, shut the _fuck_ up."

Tara's voice was icy but calm as she prodded her mother in the chest. Abigail silently took out her phone to record the altercation.

"You were never welcome at my wedding. You're not welcome in any part of my life from here on out. We both know you only came to beg for money. Honestly, how far the mighty have fallen."

Helen bristled. She did look rather like Pam on one of her weekend benders at the Stardrop. Her fake fur and pearls were gone, replaced by a ratty JojaMart tee and jorts, topped off with a gaudy pair of flip-flops. Helen opened her mouth to protest the audacity of her child. Tara, however, wasn't done.

"Marnie, would you be a dear and hand me the income yield for my farm? Thanks. As you can see, Mother, I'm afraid I have no funds to give you."

Helen gaped at the numbers. "This says you have nearly two million-"

"Half of which is in savings. The other half is going towards Sebastian's personal programming projects." Tara signed her name with a flourish as Helen growled. "Now. Alex is going to be a gentleman and escort you to the bus stop. You can go quietly and there'll be no trouble. If not, I'm going to call my lawyer, Mr. Wright, and the ensuing legal troubles will be piled up so high you'll never recover. Are we clear?"

"Crystal," Helen mumbled, as Alex gripped her by the forearm to lead her away. Tara whirled around as the crowd cheered, and stomped back to Mayor Lewis.

"A-as I was saying, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Sebastian swooped in with a joyous laugh and dipped Tara into a deep kiss. Robin was sobbing softly, Demetrius looked stern but proud, and both Abigail and Sam were cheering madly.

"Did you really mean that? About signing off all that money for my indie game?" Sebastian asked softly.

Tara shrugged, grinning. "I've got a very steady income. Whatever dreams you have, I want you to be able to follow them."

Sebastian kissed her on the forehead as the crowd cooed. "Right now, this is the only dream I want."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bro i wrote this all in one sitting i'm sorry it's so short
> 
> ACE ATTORNEY EASTER EGG HIDDEN WITHIN BECAUSE MY OTHER HYPERFIXATION JUST GOT DONE WITH NARUMITSU WEEK YEET


	28. Wedding night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wedding smut. That is all.

The rest of the wedding passed without a hitch. Evelyn had crafted a beautiful wedding cake decorated with sugared pansies and marzipan, and Haley had been put in charge of the photography.

Looking at Sebastian's beaming face and clasping his arm, Tara thanked the stars that she'd found someone so perfect. He wasn't just beautiful on the eyes. No, Sebastian was caring, and sweet, and unbelievably kind. He hid away his compassion beneath a veil of sarcasm and cigarette smoke, but behind those violet irises was a mind worthy of giving the purest of loves.

"I can't believe this is really happening," Sebastian murmured in disbelief as he led Tara in a slow circle across the grass. Tara leaned into his shoulder affectionately. Leah was playing a song from one of Tara's favorite films, Beauty and the Beast. At first, Sebastian had been against playing a waltz from a Disney film, but after watching the beloved classic, he'd been roped in. _Tale as Old as Time_ truly was a masterpiece.

As the song ended, Sebastian pulled Tara close into a soft, affectionate kiss.

"Wanna get out of here?" Sebastian practically purred.

"Do I ever," Tara grinned, catching Sebastian's eye as he winked at her.

"All right everybody, me and the wife are headed home. Lots of farm stuff to catch up on," he called to the crowd.

"Like making babies!" Sam hollered, and Abigail whacked him good-naturedly.

"I'll, uh, get back to you on that one, Sam," Sebastian stammered, blushing. Tara gave him a smirk.

"Sure."

"Don't you start," Sebastian hissed. His bride only laughed as they waved jubilantly to the guests.

"Ugh, I can't wait to get out of these shoes," Tara groaned as she dug out a farm warp totem, passing a second one to Sebastian. She pressed her hands onto the smoothed wood, feeling the wind swirl around her, and suddenly she was home.

Tara watched, entranced, as her husband shimmered into existence beside her. She eyed him hungrily. With his jacket off, tie unraveled, and sleeves rolled up to his elbows, he looked ravishing.

"It's not even three o'clock," Sebastian commented. "Morning weddings honestly aren't that bad."

"Yeah, 'cause they leave the rest of the day for hot marital sex," Tara grinned, kicking off her heels.

Sebastian caught her eye, a slight glint of lust clouding his purple eyes as he removed his own shoes and socks. "Is that a suggestion, babe?"

Tara flushed at the deep register of his voice. "Maybe..."

"Good," Sebastian growled, as he pressed her into their bedroom wall, nipping at her earlobe. "Because I intend to make you _scream."_

Tara gave a little yelp as he bit down lightly on her pulse point, soothing it by blowing on it lightly. He drew back to remove his shirt and black slacks, and Tara shuddered. His eyes had darkened to an almost midnight violet, lidded with lust. He brushed back his dark hair, smirking, and looked Tara up and down with a tantalizing bite to his lip.

Yoba, he was an incubus. And he knew it, pulling slightly at the waistband of his boxers to expose more of the dark curls there, moaning softly and thrusting his hips into the air with desperate want.

"Turn around, Tara. I can't be the only one exposing myself," he said coolly, squeezing Tara's lace-clad hips.

Tara obliged wordlessly, feeling a thrill of excitement jolt up her spine as she looked at the mermaid's pendant nestled snugly between her breasts. She nearly mewled at the feeling of Sebastian's warm fingers unzipping her dress all the way down, and the way he purred approvingly at her white lingerie.

_This is real. This is happening._

Sebastian slid the straps of Tara's wedding dress down her shoulders as Tara stepped out of it, whistling at the pearly white garments covering his wife's private areas.

"Holy Yoba, you look hot," he growled, cupping both breasts hungrily. "All this for me?"

Tara nodded. "I know you don't mind my usual underwear, but I wanted to do something special for our wedding night."

Sebastian smiled, that predatory glint in his eye returning full force. "I appreciate the enthusiasm very much, dear, but these panties are going to end up like all the others."

Tara frowned. "Wha-AH!"

She yelped in surprise as Sebastian picked her up bridal style, plopping her on the bed unceremoniously before crawling over her, capturing her gaze in a salacious claim. "They're going to end up ignored on the floor as I fuck you into the mattress," he purred, pressing his lips to hers firmly in a deep, sensual kiss.

He tasted slightly of spearmint nicotine gum, his body smelling of rose and cologne. Those pale, lithe arms caged her in snugly, making Tara feel safe. Sheltered. Loved.

"I want you so bad, Tara," Sebastian said huskily. "I want to make you call my name so that it carries all the way to the Wizard's tower."

Tara squeaked as he began fiddling with the clasp of her bra. "S-surely you can't be suggesting that you want the Wizard to hear us having sex?"

"No," Sebastian intoned, smiling victoriously as he undid the bra, revealing Tara's plump, supple breasts. "I'd want the entire town to know. I'd want all of those eligible bachelors to know you're taken. That you're mine." Before Tara could respond, he placed his mouth on one of her breasts, suckling at it with single-minded focus.

Tara gasped in pleasure at the contact of his tongue on her nipple, the tip swirling eagerly around the sensitive bud. She could feel Sebastian rutting against her thighs, his cock leaking a patch of wetness onto the front of his boxers. Warily, she palmed him through his underwear, and he released her breast, moaning loudly as he threw back his head.

And hell, if that wasn't the hottest thing she'd ever heard.

"Baby, that feels so fucking good," Sebastian gasped, and when he'd opened his eyes again, he gazed intently at her clothed pussy.

"Let's skip the pretenses, sweetheart," he crooned, pulling Tara's panties over her thighs and off of her legs swiftly. "I want to bury myself in you."

"Wait," Tara said softly. "C-can I...can I blow you?"

"I'm not gonna last with you like this, baby," Sebastian groaned, and his dick gave an interested twitch. He was leaking copiously onto his boxers, panting as he gripped the sheets.

Tara finally took pity on her husband, removing his boxers as he grunted, desperate to reach climax. As soon as they were both fully naked, Sebastian pulled her onto his lap, seating himself inside her with one swift thrust.

The ensuing gasp of euphoria that Sebastian gave made Tara slick with want. She didn't have long to wait, though. Sebastian began moving with slow, practiced thrusts, one hand grounding himself on her hips as she rode him and the other splayed across her back. Tara let out an elated cry as he ran his nails lightly down her back. Evidently, he'd figured out her back was one of her more sensitive areas.

"Yoba, you're so fucking tight, babydoll," Sebastian grunted, a bead of sweat trickling down his neck as he tried not to come. "Please, please tell me you're close, Tara, I can't-"

He trailed off into a breathy gasp as he pulsed inside her, coating Tara's womb with his essence. Tara was right behind him, shuddering as she too reached her peak. Their Mermaid Pendants clinked together as Tara collapsed onto Sebastian's chest, utterly spent.

"When we wake up, I want you to dom me into next week, hon," Tara yawned. Sebastian stroked her hair lazily.

"Mmm. You want me to sing to you during foreplay, too? Or should I get out some handcuffs?"

Tara snuggled into his chest. "Sing that concert song for me. That one always gets me in a mood."

"I was thinking about asking you if you wanted to do it that night," Sebastian confessed. "Being in my Teakwood persona brings out that hidden confidence in me. I dunno, something about the image of the hidden talented singer just makes me feel...good."

"Oh, it makes me feel good," Tara whimpered. "That deep voice made me wetter than a-"

"Yoba, Tara, I just came," Sebastian whined. "Are you trying to kill me?"

Tara just giggled. Life was going to be fun with Sebastian around.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> nO i don't have a celebrity crush on lady gaga what makes you say that ahahahah
> 
> *shoves youtube history of 1 hour lady gaga song loops under the bed while sweating in bisexual*


	29. Casual domesticity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian and Tara forgo a black-tie event to play Seb's finished indie horror game. Can you guess which game I've been a little obsessed with in my week or so of writer's block?

"Tara! Wake up!"

Tara gave a disgruntled moan and promptly buried herself even more deeply under the covers.

"It's my off day, babe," she groaned at her husband. "Lemme sleep."

"Tara, the opening night of my game is tonight. You gotta get up if we're gonna make it to Zuzu City."

Tara groaned, rolling over and gingerly inching out from the toasty-warm covers. It was worth it, though, to see Sebastian smoothing the lapels of his tuxedo with a rare grin on his face. She smiled blearily at him as she took her backless nightdress and went into the bathroom to try it on.

Sebastian's game, _Inside,_ had been a rousing success. Praised for its puzzle-solving, platforming, and chilling atmosphere, Sebastian had been positively floored to hear that he'd be nominated for an award in the Programming Gala of Zuzu City. This was something he'd been excited about for days, and Tara would be damned if she wasn't going to make her husband happy. Socializing should be worth it for him. But even after all this time, she found herself wanting to just sink into the bed and do nothing.

It wasn't going to be for long. Besides, Sebastian's withdrawn, gothic flair would rear its head if he stayed too long anyway. They'd hit the bar, dance a little, sit through the ceremony, then leave.

Sebastian peered in the door just as Tara had pulled the dress on. "Need anything?"

"Yeah," Tara murmured. "There's a tag in the back of the dress. Could you get it for me?"

Sebastian inspected the dress, finding the annoying prickly piece of plastic and swiftly yanking it off. He noticed his wife was trembling a little bit.

"Hey," he said softly, hugging her from behind. "The awards ceremony is just a formality. We don't have to go if you don't want to."

Tara relaxed a little. "I don't want you to be disappointed," she mumbled.

"I don't want _you_ to be uncomfortable," he retorted, nuzzling her cheek. "You make me happy every day. There's no need to overexert yourself just for me. You're important, too."

"You'd forgo this for me?" Tara inquired, eyes wide. Sebastian nodded.

"To be honest, I don't want to go, really. I just like the look on your face when I get in a suit."

Tara flushed. "Not my fault you're so pretty in black."

"Easy, now," Sebastian said huskily. "If you keep saying things like that, we're _definitely_ not going."

His hands had found its way to the slit in her dress and were caressing her bare thigh. Just as his touch neared the place where Tara wanted it most, he stopped.

"You know, sex is great and all," he grinned teasingly. "But you know what we could do? We could play my game. I wanna see all your reactions."

Tara's eyes sparkled. She _LOVED_ gaming. In her off time, it was all she'd do besides watching TV with Sebastian. Hell, it was one of the reasons they had become friends so quickly.

"Don't spoil a thing," she warned, slipping out of the dress.

Sebastian's eyes drank in her body before he too began to remove his gala wear.

Minutes later, they were in pajamas, huddled on the couch around Tara's laptop.

"So...I'm a kid in the woods."

"Uh-huh. You're in the woods and you can't be seen by anyone."

"Wooooow," Tara drawled, looking at Seb with a raised eyebrow. "Where's the intrigue, huh? It's like you're writing an autobiography."

Sebastian nudged his wife playfully. "Keep going, hon. It's got a lot of great themes in it. Like corporate brainwashing that Joja does."

"AGH! DOGS!"

Sebastian laughed raucously as Tara cursed, forcing the character into a stumbling sprint as guards with flashlights and angry dogs chased her down.

"What are these fuckers even doing out here?!" Tara raged as her husband kept laughing. "They shot a child in the head! How do they know I'm not just lost? Why do they have to be so rude?"

"Jojamart decided to put a store here," Sebastian snorted. "Never underestimate the evils of the rich."

"We're rich," Tara pointed out. "I make a million each year."

"Yeah, but you support everybody. You're an inclusive small business that operates for the good of the community. That's different than having cash out your ass and still wanting to rake in more while stepping on everyone to get to your goal."

"Babe, who hurt you," Tara giggled as Sebastian smirked at her.

"Shut up and play the game," he snickered.

Tara scoffed as she crept past another pair of guards wielding flashlights. Sebastian watched her intently as she clambered into a barn and was immediately surrounded by a small flock of chicks.

"Aww, Seb, did you put this in here for me?" Tara cooed as she watched her character walk along with a small trail of baby chickens.

"You know I did, babe," he smiled, ruffling her hair. Tara paused the game to give him a flurry of kisses on his cheek. Sebastian laughed, pushing her off good-naturedly.

"C'mon, I wanna see what you think of the ending," he urged. Tara pouted but returned her focus to the computer.

Hours later, Tara was sitting open-mouthed at the laptop as the credits rolled.

"Okay. WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT." Sebastian cackled.

"I told you I was a fan of horror, Tara. If I didn't make it a little bit shocking, what's the point?"  
  


"So I'm just...that thing, now? A giant blob of flesh wandering the woods? What about my individual life, man? What if I wanted to be a kid?"

Sebastian shrugged. "Too bad. You're Akira now."

Tara guffawed. "You big nerd. All freakish globs of organic matter aside, that was awesome. I can really see where Jojamart inspired you with those mind control segments."

Sebastian grinned. "Ah, so you got the gist of it, then? The difference between corporate-controlled unity and the choice of free-willed unity?"

Tara rolled her eyes. "Yoba, you're such a socialist," she joked. "What happened to my nonconformist, hot goth husband?"

Sebastian raised an eyebrow. "He got a job and remains just as hot and goth as he was when you first came here," he replied with a smirk. Tara giggled, worming her way into his arms.

"Damn right you are."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i do not control the speed at which my motivation returns and leaves
> 
> but hey! have this thingy!
> 
> also go on a butthole-sniffing adventure with the Game Grump's playthrough of Inside it's hilarious


	30. Ebony desire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tara gets a hot article of clothing from the Oasis and it riles Sebby up. 
> 
> MORE SMUT, BITCHES. ENJOY THE SIN.

Tara let out a huff of frustration as she trudged wearily out of the Skull Caverns, her knapsack overflowing with gems and ore. Honestly, if it weren't for her foraging skills and staggering income, she'd be dead by now, and her clothes would probably be cleaner.

She grimaced as she looked at her overalls, smeared with dried serpent blood and smelling of dispatched iridium crabs. Maybe Sandy had an extra shirt or something.

Tara downed a refreshing Life Elixir as she headed off to the Oasis, offering a friendly wave to Lupita the Desert Trader as she crossed the barren road. Upon entering the small, blue building, Sandy gasped at her customer's appearance.

"Oh, you poor, burnt thing! Did those savage Pepper Rexes get you in a twist, love?"

"More than that, Sandy," Tara sighed. "You got any clothes for sale? I have a spare set of shorts, but my shirt is ruined."

Sandy nodded. "I've got this little number right here. Woven from batwing cotton. Charming fit."

Tara unfolded the black shirt, eyeing it approvingly. "Sold."

After handing Sandy the gold and changing into a less grimy set of clothes, Tara boarded the bus with a satisfied sigh.

She had no idea what lay in store for her at home.

***************

Sebastian was bored. He'd fed the animals, watered the crops, played _Terraria_ at least twice, and hung some new wallpaper. It seemed like time was passing by even more slowly than usual now that his wife was away. He smiled to himself. Tara always made the days go by faster. She had a knack for making everything fun.

As if on cue, Sebastian heard the door swing open. He turned his head to greet Tara, only for the greeting to die on his lips.

_Sweet Yoba under the sun,_ he thought. _That's my wife?!_

Tara had absolutely no business looking that sensual. Her wide, lovely hips were accentuated nicely by a pair of denim cutoffs, and her lithe, voluptuous chest was drawn out with a very tight-fitting black shirt. To make matters worse, Tara had, as usual, chosen to forgo a bra, and the teasing outline of her pert nipples was enough to make Sebastian growl in his throat.

"Hey, Seb," Tara chirped, plopping onto his lap. Sebastian nearly whined as she hugged him excitedly, her ample chest nearly suffocating him. Not a bad way to die.

"I got ten diamonds today. Ten! Our daily profit is going to be through the roof!"

"Where'd you get that?" Sebastian managed, rubbing the soft ebony material. Yoba, he was so hard he was aching. He hoped Tara would be up for some physical exertion tonight.

"Oh, yeah," Tara said offhandedly. "I got it at the oasis. It's one size too small, but hey, I couldn't go home topless."

"There's hardly a difference, princess," Sebastian growled, kneading her chest. Tara's face turned scarlet as he yanked the hem of her shirt up, roughly pawing at her breasts.

"O-oh, I guess this really did something for you-AH!" Tara squealed as Sebastian lightly bit her right nipple, deftly undoing the button on her shorts.

"Need you," he rasped, and Tara's eyes flicked down to the telling bulge in his jeans.

“Okay,” she consented. “Do me as hard as you’d like.”

Sebastian gave a purr of approval before shucking off his clothes so fast Tara could have sworn he’d teleported out of them. She yelped as he flipped her over, feeling his hot breath on her back and his cock twitching between her thighs. Tara shifted to pull off the black shirt, only for Sebastian to pry the article of clothing from her hands.

“You’re keeping this on,” he growled, rubbing his hot, hard shaft against Tara’s slit before pushing in with a pleased groan. Tara mewled at how deep he was inside her, letting out a gasp of surprise as he gripped her hips hard enough to bruise. She collapsed, forearms shaking, onto the mattress as Sebastian rammed his cock inside her, moaning deeply.

"Seb... _yes..."_

"Yoba, you feel so nice, Tara," Sebastian hissed, enveloped in the pleasure of Tara's tight walls gripping him lovingly. The scent of her, sweet and intoxicating, hit him like a freight train, and he lost himself in her.

Tara squealed as he swung his legs over the side of the bed, standing upright with eyes blazing, and began pumping into her full force. She wrapped her legs around his hips, held aloft solely by his toned arms. Tara had never thought that Sebastian had this much strength in him. Then again, he did work on his motorbike every Saturday.

Her thoughts dissipated into a haze of ecstasy as Sebastian bit her pulse point lightly, the head of his cock snagging neatly inside her as he climaxed. She shuddered, crying his name to the heavens as he spilled his come inside her. He nuzzled her with a sleepy, sated smile, pulling out lazily and clambering into bed.

Tara sighed, retreating to the bathroom to clean herself up. As she walked by the mirror, she froze. Her shirt had been almost torn in two, the grip of Sebastian's hands tearing a neat rip from her neckline to her breastbone. She flushed. Knowing that her husband had that kind of raw strength in him was, quite frankly, _hot._ Hot as fuck. Just by looking at him, you would never know the surprising kindness of Sebastian, or any other surprises about him. Like so many others, Tara had blindly assumed that he was a scrawny goth freeloader who had given up on life.

Oh, how wrong she was. Her husband was strong, smart, compassionate, and full of robust sexual energy that indicated he was anything but sickly.

And she loved each and every bit of him.

Sighing wearily, Tara pulled off her shirt and cleaned off Sebastian's release from her body, walking back to bed. Sebastian gave his lovely, naked wife a once-over before deciding he was too tired to go for round two. Yawning, he pulled Tara into his arms, stroking her hair until they both fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *slaps roof of Sebastian* this bad boy can fit so many boyfriend standards in him
> 
> leave me and my depraved, single heart ALONE :'{


	31. You're home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Based on when your spouse gives you a Stardrop. My favorite thing was home, so I did a drabble on what that means to my OC.

Sebastian and Tara were both in the prime of their lives, for lack of a better term. Besides Sebastian's successes as a programmer, Tara's husband had also picked up a hobby of electronic music. Most of his songs were either about gaming or his love for Tara, but some of them were emotionally wrenching songs about the struggles of life and sadness. Often, Sebastian would still take walks out to his favorite mountain lake, and Tara left him alone. More than anything, Tara never wanted to be a stifling presence to her husband. When he needed to be alone, she understood.

Maybe their mutual understanding of each other was why they were doing so well together. Clint and Emily's relationship was fairly new, but the whole town wasn't sure it would last. Alex and Haley had broken up once or twice, only to get back together a week or so later. Everyone else seemed to be doing well, but ever since a mysterious blight had spread across the Valley rendering everyone unable to venture outside without sigils of protection, people seemed to be on edge with their loved ones.

Sebastian and Tara were introverts at heart, though. The new change in lifestyle hardly affected them. Tara primarily used warp totems to go from place to place, and her primary destinations were usually the farm and Skull Caverns. Sebastian worked entirely from home, and when he wasn't working, he was recording, gaming, or reading comics. Simply put, they were both fine with the situation life had thrown at them.

"Hey, Tara, check it out," Sebastian said excitedly to his wife one afternoon. "My song hit over two million views."

"Why wouldn't it? It's a fucking bop, baby," Tara chirped. "You've got the range."

"Oh, shut up, you," Sebastian stuttered, blushing.

"Make me, Seb."

Tara hefted her pickaxe over her shoulder with a cocky grin while Sebastian rolled his eyes.

"We both know you've got the most strength in the family. I can't make you do anything unless you say otherwise."

"Meanwhile I can peg you in the barn if I wanted to," Tara said offhandedly as Sebastian let out a genuine hoot of laughter.

"Hey, I'm down for it if you are," he grinned, and Tara only responded with a thoughtful hum and a rosy blush.

Sebastian gazed lovingly at his wife, dirt-smattered and covered in sweat from her farm chores. Honestly, she was perfect, from her starry-eyed gaze whenever she overheard him softly singing to himself as he worked to her excited hand-flapping stims whenever she got excited about something.

He wanted to show her how much he cared. And not by planning a romantic dinner or date night. He wanted to show her his love the Stardew Valley way.

When was the last time anyone had ever discussed where Stardrops came from? Many said they appeared only to a soul of great renown when they had achieved an act of merit by just shimmering into thin air. Others argued that, since the Stardrop was a fruit, they had to be grown somewhere. Maybe in a very rare place, but Stardrop trees hadn't been heard of in Pelican Town.

Well, it was worth looking into.

For her, he'd brave anything.

**************

Okay, scratch that last bit. Sebastian would brave a lot of things, but venturing into the Tangled Deathwoods to hike across the Tundra of Unending Frigidity in order to take the path leading up to the Stardrop's Summit was not something he was about to do.

Tara had already acquired some from the townsfolk upon completing achievements and giving an offering to Old Master Cannoli, but there was one Stardrop that Sebastian knew of that she hadn't acquired. The prize one at the Stardew Valley Fair.

On the sixteenth day of fall every year, Stardew Valley grew packed to the gills with tourists. Sebastian always hung out around near the fortune-teller's tent with his friends, the heavy smell of incense often being enough to mask his smoking.

Now that his telltale bad boy habit had been tamed, however, Sebastian had found other ways to remain hidden during the fair's unbearable social smog. He'd hang out with Sam or Abigail while Tara fruitlessly tried to collect enough star tokens to win the tempting fruit. But as always, the slingshot game got her every year. And, as always, she went home empty-handed save for a few bags of kettle corn and her winning grange display.

It was a good thing Sebastian had taken archery in camp, then.

His hands might be aching like crazy, but it'd be worth the smile on her face.

"Hey, Tara, did you see the Stardrop? It looks almost juicier than last year's."

Tara pouted. "No need to taunt me. I'll never get it."

"You got over a thousand tokens in the grange display, didn't you?"

"Yeah, plus a couple hundred from fishing. I can always go buy them from the stall..."

As if on cue, Tara gasped. Her eye had caught the prize stall, where the Stardrop was missing from its case. "No way! Somebody won it already?!"

"Only for you, babe," Sebastian grinned, producing the purple fruit with a flourish. "Took archery in summer camp-OOPH!"

"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU, SEBBY!" Tara howled, excitedly covering his cheek with a smattering of kisses. "You won that for me? Yoba, you're exceptional..."

"You can make it up to me later," Sebastian hums, a spark of indecency lighting up his eyes. "Right now, I want to go home and watch your face when you see how it tastes."

They returned to the little farmhouse, Tara bouncing on the balls of her feet excitedly as she cradled the soft fruit. The pair plopped down comfortably on the two deck chairs, Sebastian watching his wife intently as she took a bite of the Stardrop. She gave a groan of contentment as the juice ran down her chin.

"It's got the texture of a really crisp watermelon. Nice, cold, and crunchy. Seedless."

Sebastian nodded. "What else, babe?"

Tara took a second bite, making an inquisitive noise. "It's almost like....the taste fluctuates. Like it changes moment to moment. But it always reminds me of home. Like...first bite was Grandpa's snickerdoodles. This one tastes like your mom's pumpkin soup."

Sebastian smiled. "I guess you saw my place as home from the beginning."

Tara blushed. "Certainly not because you were there. No, but seriously, your mom is like the mom I never had. And before we even got to where we are, I saw you as family a little bit. The loner cousin who you get to know really well by uncovering interests you both have in common."

"I'm your cousin now, huh? Sweet Home, Alabama intensifies..."

Tara and her husband shared a peal of obnoxious laughter at Seb's joke. Tara, still giggling, took the third and final bite of the small starry fruit. A light blush spread across her face.

"Oh."

"What? What's it like?"

"It tastes like...like you."

"So...bitter and salty, then?"

Tara's face went scarlet, and she swatted Sebastian amiably as he chortled. "NO! Like, it tastes like all of our kisses rolled into one. Like the cigarette and cologne ones, the chocolate-covered strawberry ones, the nicotine mint gum ones...it tastes like you."

Sebastian pulled his wife close, nuzzling her hair. "So I'm home to you?"

Tara gave that small, adorable squeak of assent from behind her palms.

Sebastian just chuckled, moving her hands away to envelop her in a kiss tasting of tart blackberry cobbler. Tara leaned into it, eyes misty with affection for her gothic, achingly sweet husband.

"Yeah. You are my home, Seb."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's been a HOT SECOND since i had motivation and time to write recreationally. classes are starting, and i'm taking a full load this time...hah gottem ;)
> 
> so this and my other unfinished works will only be updated when i have time. dunno when that is but it shouldn't be soon...sry...
> 
> Oh! The song Seb was working on is Lock Me Up by The Chalkeaters. Very electronic, tons of gaming references, totally fit with my headcanon for Seb's electronic music career as he moves into farm life. Check it out, it's fantastic!


	32. Frogs!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An interpretation of Sebastian's fourteen heart event. No complaints, I'm HORNY ON MAIN OK

It was a pleasantly rainy day in Pelican Town. The kind where there is a lazy, light drizzle in the air, and low rumbles of thunder occasionally break the sound of pattering rain against the leaves.

Tara was walking along the mountain path to her in-law's cabin by the lake, where she was hoping to snag a legendary fish. What she saw upon arrival was not quite what she had expected.

Sebastian was rummaging around in a salmonberry bush, his head and torso completely submerged in the damp flora. Tara giggled as she heard a twig snap and her husband cursing colorfully. Cheerfully, she decided to alert him of her presence by smacking him on the ass.

"Hey, babe, watcha got there?"

Sebastian jolted upwards with a yelp, twisting around comically to see who had startled him. He looked almost like a cat who had been caught in a sardine tin.

"Fucking Yoba, Tara, don't scare me like that. I thought I was going to be a recreation of that scene from Deliverance."

Tara snorted. "You know I wouldn't let that happen. Any strangers try to touch my man and they're lucky to escape with their body intact. Seriously, though, what ARE you doing down there?"

"There's an injured toad in there," Sebastian mumbled, gesturing to the bush. "He's going to be some vulture's lunch if I don't save him."

Tara smiled. Her husband had an adorable weakness for amphibious creatures. It was heartwarming to see how much he strayed from his usual gloomy self whenever he was faced with a frog or toad in need.

"Hey, I need your help," Sebastian whispered excitedly, tugging his wife away from the bush he had been rifling through. "He moved over to that bush a while ago. Go over there and see if you can scare him out. I'll wait over here and catch him."

Tara nodded, tiptoeing softly over to the bush. As Sebastian nodded at her, she whacked the bush with her sword. A fat toad leaped clumsily out of the bush, burbling in alarm. He moved fairly quickly, but Sebastian was quicker. Scooping up the poor creature, he deposited it in a large jar lined with pond scum and weeds.

Sebastian clicked his tongue. "Poor guy. His foot's all mangled. There's no way he can survive in the wild."

Tara brushed a lock of damp hair out of her face to peer at the toad sitting moodily in his glass prison. "We could take care of him. You're good with frogs, right?"

"I suppose I am," Sebastian mumbled, still looking over the toad with concern. "I think we might have to take care of him. There's no way he'd survive in the wild like this."

Tara grinned. "It's our new son, then."

Sebastian smirked at her. "Yeah. He's got your nose."

Tara stuck out her tongue at Sebastian, who merely laughed at her.

"Let's take him home."

********************

"We should name him Orgoch, after the King of Slegurthians. They're frog people, right?"

  
Sebastian looked up at Tara with a cocked eyebrow from where he sat in front of their new terrarium.

"Technically, in Cave Saga X 1.0, they were described to be more like newts. Longer and more stealthy than the Fitonians. The Fitonians are the frog people. Personally, I think Gakzlar the Belcher is more fitting."

"But Gakzlar wasn't even a toad, babe! He was a boar!"

Sebastian patted Tara on the head with a mocking tut. "Oh, sweetheart. Clearly, you don't remember that he's part of the Cult of Scion. They can change species when they die, and he reformed to become a toad in season four, remember?"

Tara rolled her eyes. "Season four sucked, so I skimmed it. Do you think Gakzlar is gonna make it?"

"He's not strong enough to escape predators anymore," Sebastian said with a frown. Gakzlar was indeed limping with each clumsy hop, his mangled leg flopping listlessly with each leap. Her husband was right. Their slimy child would never make it in the wild.

"He looks happy, though, doesn't he?" Sebastian said with a grin. Tara felt her heart flutter. His grin was so infectious, so utterly heartwarming, that she couldn't help but lean in and give him a soft kiss on the lips.

"Yoba, you're cute," he sighed, before looking back at Gakzlar. "I wonder if our little friend will get lonely..."

"Why not start a frog sanctuary? Get him a baby mama?"

Sebastian laughed. "That's not a bad idea. I just wish you hadn't phrased it in those terms."

Tara poked her husband on the forehead. "You knew what you got into when you married me, you dork."

She sighed, leaning back on Sebastian's chest as they watched Gakzlar croak moodily. "Y'know, I'm glad you've found a new hobby."

Sebastian pressed a kiss to Tara's hair. "Yeah. I do an awful lot of computer work and gaming. It's nice to have some real, physical hobbies. Something tangible, to feel like I'm really working with my hands and doing something."

"You've come a long way from the moody programmer goth, haven't you, love?"

"Well, I have you to thank for it."

They leaned on each other amiably, watching Gakzlar, until Sebastian suddenly decided that he was a bit too excited to watch toads anymore. He'd devoured Tara in a sloppy heated kiss of twining tongues and wandering hands. Both of them were too enraptured in their own pleasure to notice the mischievous Gakzlar clambering out of his cage and landing with a slimy plop on the floor.

Tara was panting and topless when her eyes strayed over to the cage of their new pet. "Seb?"

"Mmm?"

"Something's up..."

"Oh, I know it is, babe," Sebastian growled, rubbing his hardness against her thigh with a tantalizing nip to his wife's collarbone.

"That's-ah!-not what I meant," Tara gasped as Sebastian continued making his way down her neck while kneading her breasts lovingly. "Our little beast has escaped."

"We both know I'm not little, sweetheart," Sebastian hummed distractedly.

Tara jostled his shoulder. "Babe, the TOAD. HE'S GOTTEN OUT."

Sebastian finally caught on, sitting up frantically. "What? When?"

Tara retrieved her shirt, pulling it on in a frenzy. "I don't know! You think I care about frogs when I'm getting dicked?"

"Technically, that hasn't even happened yet," Sebastian muttered, peering under the terrarium table. He looked ridiculous, with his hair sticking out in some places and wearing nothing but a pair of frog boxers. "Let's see. Toads like cold, damp places. Maybe he's in the basement."

Tara nodded. "You go check. I'll check the upstairs."

Tara crawled around on all fours, scanning the floor with all senses on alert. There was a faint trail of slime, but it had disappeared quickly once she'd crawled past the fridge. Out of nowhere, she heard a gurgling noise. The faint sound of a toad croaking.

Tara followed the sound, skittering quickly on her hands and knees until she found Gakzlar crouching underneath the sofa. She snickered as she retrieved the toad, placing him back in the terrarium just as Sebastian came up the stairs.

"Well, no luck...wait, where was he?"

Tara giggled. "Right underneath us."

Sebastian's eyes widened. "You mean...while we were..."

"Yep."

Sebastian scoffed, then chuckled, until he burst into a raucous peal of laughter, plopping onto the sofa.

"Holy shit. That's...that's great."

"Yeah, you were so busy listening to the noises I was making that you couldn't even notice the toad right under the sofa," Tara laughed.

"Speaking of the sofa...wanna continue where we left off?" Sebastian inquired with a smirk. He gently took her hand, running it over his lap. "Some things don't go away so easily."

Tara shivered. "Well, I'd be happy to help..." She gave a yelp as Sebastian tackled her into the pillows.

Gakzlar gave a lonely croak from inside his terrarium. If only he were able to get in on some action.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'll finish this i swear but i literally got a job so idk when


	33. Feast of the WInter Star

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian gives his wife a touching gift for Stardew Valley's version of Christmas.

It was a very chilly day in Pelican Town. The residents were bundled up in coats and scarves, the livestock were herded into their heated barns, and the Feast of the Winter Star was just around the corner.

Tara and Sebastian had mostly spent the days sequestered away in their cozy farmhouse, playing video games, binging TV with a steaming mug of cocoa, or participating in more... carnal activities to keep themselves warm.

Of course, the farm wasn't about to run itself. The greenhouse crops and animal products needed to be collected and sold. The slimes needed watering. And, as always, mining for gemstones and ore was a must if Tara was going to maintain a steady income. But for the most part, winter was a time where she could kick back and relax with her husband for a change.

As of today, the two of them were playing _Terraria_ together in a frenzied attempt to beat the final boss.

"AGHHH! Stop throwing fucking eyeballs at me, you eldritch buttsucker!" Tara raged as the Moon Lord continued his luminescent rampage against their tiny pixelated heroes.

"Tara, the best strategy is to use ranged weapons like the Solar Eruption while hunkering down with the nurse so she can constantly heal you," Sebastian giggled."Better yet, just use your Zenith."

"I haven't found a sword shrine yet! Besides, who's going to beat this guy to a pulp, huh? I keep dying, you keep living so I can respawn. Plus, I put all my coins in a piggy bank. It's fiiiiine," Tara retorted, jamming the buttons on her laptop.

"Not all of them. You're losing platinum," Sebastian said teasingly while Tara wailed as the Lovecraftian boss killed her for the umpteenth time.

"How the hell do you do this? Handheld is so much easier," Tara whined. Sebastian tutted at her, flipping his purple hair out of his eyes.

"I'm a programmer, babe. It's not like I haven't had experience in typing and all that. Besides, if you play on your Swap all the time, your coordination on the keyboard is obviously going to be shitty."

"Well I can't just wait for 1.4 to come out, can I? At least you programmed me to have better items and stuff," Tara huffed.

"Can't say no to my terrible gamer girl," Sebastian snickered.

Tara just stuck her tongue out at him. "You're just as bad. Going into a free items server to get all your shit."

Sebastian rolled his eyes. "It's called exploiting the system. Malicious compliance. I'm not about to grind for hours when I can use my skills to get the stuff easily."

"Mmn. Still a cheater. Have you decided what to get your secret gift person yet?"

Sebastian grimaces at Tara, leaning back against the sofa cushions to close his laptop. He looks almost...sad, like he either forgot or has no clue what to get.

"No idea, honestly. See, I'm really close to them, so I want to get them something that really shows my appreciation. But I can't decide whether to get something useful or something they'd use for entertainment."

"Well, who is it? Maybe I can help..."

Sebastian flops over into Tara's lap. "Not telling. It's no fun if you can't follow the tradition."

Tara flicks him on the nose, and Sebastian laughs.

"You sound like Mayor Lewis," she accuses. Sebastian rolls his eyes.

"Please. At least we have the decency to fuck inside. Remember when you found them making out in a bush at midnight?"

Tara shuddered. "Yoba, the depravity. Now I'm not sleeping." She got up, wrapped her arms about herself, shuddered again, then went out to collect the animal products for selling.

Sebastian opened his laptop and returned to the tabs he'd had open for farming supplies and video games. Either way, he knew Tara would love whatever he got, but he really didn't know what to get. Fertilizer? No. Legend of Lonk: Exhale of Wilderness? No, Tara was planning on buying it next week.

He had to get her something. Something special.

Gakzlar gave a loud burble and Sebastian flinched, sticking up a middle finger at the amphibian. He froze.

_Frogs. That's it._

Pulling on a sweater, he rummaged around in one of Tara's endless supply of chests until he found what he was looking for. Pocketing his treasures, he grabbed his phone, sent a quick text to Tara, and headed off to the blacksmith.

****************

The clanging of Clint's hammer against the anvil made Sebastian's head hurt. He grumbled, checking his watch again. 8:45. It was such a shame that the farm's growing popularity meant it had to be operated from the wee hours of the morning. If only Tara could sleep in like the rest of the townspeople.

Sebastian's watch beeped and he knocked on the door, taking the sound of Clint's hammer stopping as a sign to enter.

"Oh! Hey, Sebastian, what can I do you for?" Clint inquired, brushing some coal dust off of his palms.

Sebastian gathered up a couple of bars of silver and a large diamond, sliding a picture of a diamond carved into a frog for reference. "You made all the rings that the Monster's Guild sells, right? Can you make a frog necklace?"

Clint gave a thoughtful hum. "Sure. It's been a while since I've made something that delicate, though. Maybe Emily can help me with it." He looked almost mournful.

"Man, you've gotta ask her out sometime," Sebastian replied. "Oh, what's the total?"

Clint snapped out of his lonesome daze. "Ah. If it's for Tara, I can make it 7,500 gold. Your wife helped me out with my furnace last week. Real renaissance woman, she is."

"Yeah," Sebastian smiled, handing over the gold. "She's perfect."

***************

It's brisk and bright on the day of the Feast of the Winter Star. Everyone is gathered around platters of steaming, aromatic dishes, while a grand tree decorated with shiny baubles crowns the center of the town square.

Sebastian and Tara bundle up in their warmest sweaters and make their way to the family table where Robin has set up an astounding meal. It's a mix of the family's favorites--ice cream, spaghetti, pumpkin soup, rhubarb pie, bean hotpot, and even some of Tara's freshly sliced peaches she'd stored from the summer. Tara felt a little flutter of warmth in her chest as she recognized her own favorites among the delectable spread: fresh chocolate chip cookies, mushroom and chicken casserole, and limeade. It made a small lump of something form in her throat, knowing that there were people in her life now who listened and care about things she loved.

This was home.

Sebastian waved to Robin as they approached, who immediately rushed over to give them both a warm hug.

"There's my favorite farmer," she cooed. "So, is that a bit of a baby bump I'm seeing?"

Tara flushed, and Sebastian felt a jolt of both fear and excitement course down his spine, with a mixture of relief as Tara shook her head.

"It's all sweater, I'm afraid," she chuckled, while Robin gave a huff.

"I'm just saying, having a ginger-haired grandson around to spoil would be nice. Especially since one of my kids is out of the house and the other one who I thought would stay ends up leaving home-"

"We're thinking about it, Mom," Sebastian cut in bashfully. "Let's just open the presents and enjoy the food."

Tara let out a snort of amusement. Once upon a time, her husband would have been the one to start bickering with his family. Now, in a couple of short years, he was the calming peacemaker, dissolving tension. It was honestly kind of funny.

Mayor Lewis called for everyone to gather their presents and exchange them, and the town excitedly chattered as they swarmed the tree. Maru had gotten Tara a recycling machine to convert the trash from her pond into useful items. Robin gave Tara a pack of wood, stone, and other building materials, while Demetrius gave Tara a small bundle of rare purple mushrooms.

Sebastian watched Tara mingle and laugh with the rest of the townsfolk as she gave out gifts. He felt a small pang of jealousy as Elliot bent down to kiss Tara's hand after she'd given him a set of duck feather quills, but as she turned to him, grinning, he felt his animosity wash away.

"Well, guess it's our turn," Tara said cheerfully, handing Sebastian a rather large parcel as he gave her the small box containing his gift.

Sebastian raised an eyebrow. "This thing's massive. Is it another terrarium?"

Tara shook her head. "Better. You've been griping about this for a while."

Giving a hum of curiosity, Sebastian tore open the wrapping paper. He gasped, and Tara beamed. It was a brand-new laptop.

"Baby, you didn't," he said softly. "This is perfect!"

Tara bounced on the balls of her feet. "I sold a bunch of diamonds and a couple of prismatic shards for it. You've always been moaning how old your clunky PC is, so I thought why not?"

Sebastian pulled his wife into a warm hug, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "Thank you. It's great. Now, open yours."

Tara gingerly lifted the lid of the box, giving a small gasp. "Oh, Seb...it's lovely. Where'd you get it?"

Sebastian gave his wife a small, tender smile as she lifted the delicate silver chain to examine the intricately carved little frog. "I had Clint make it. Cost less than a lava katana."

Tara gently gathered her husband into a warm hug. "I love it."

Sebastian pecked Tara on the cheek, gazing into her aquamarine eyes lovingly. "And I love _you."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i HATE finals week but i'm going to finish this before i die
> 
> unless i die tomorrow. oofeth.
> 
> clearly i've been gaming more than writing as evidenced by this chapter


End file.
